Our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
Trusted experts in caring for the sickest babies - from tiny preemies to infants with complex conditions
At Seattle Children’s, your baby is in the hands of a whole team of experienced specialists in high-risk newborn care. Our 48-bed Level IV NICU is designed as a safe, healing place, with wrap-around services to support parents and caregivers. Level IV (regional NICU) is the top level of neonatal care defined by the American Academy of Pediatrics and Washington State Department of Health.
We are skilled and equipped to provide the highest level of care for babies who are very premature, born with high-risk conditions or had complications during birth. We encourage your family to be involved in your newborn’s care in every way possible, like holding your baby and taking part in care team meetings. See What to Expect in the NICU.
Year after year, U.S. News & World Report ranks Seattle Children's as one of the top pediatric hospitals in the country and among the nation's best in all specialties ranked, including . We are the only hospital in the Pacific Northwest that provides 24/7 access to all of the pediatric medical and surgical specialists your high-risk newborn might need.
Why Choose Us
Seattle Children’s Neonatology Program has consistently been recognized as one of the nation's best neonatology programs by U.S. News & World Report.
“There is so much patience and grace at Seattle Children’s. Not only did my family start inside those walls, I also learned how to be a mom with the help of nurses, doctors and countless medical staff. I will forever be thankful.”
— Summer’s mom Cassie Fannin
Born with a hole in her diaphragm (congenital diaphragmatic hernia), Summer was transferred to Seattle Children’s for lifesaving surgery and 4 weeks of expert care in our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Treatments and Services
We offer the most advanced treatments and services in the region, tailored to each baby’s needs. Some services are offered nowhere else in the Northwest. We treat babies with state-of-the-art neonatal respiratory support such as ECMO; complex neonatal surgery to fix a wide range of birth defects and body-cooling to reduce the risk of brain injury in newborns after a difficult birth.
Seamless care before birth and beyond
If your baby is diagnosed with a high-risk condition during pregnancy, our Fetal Center team will work with your birth hospital to plan for a safe delivery, special care at birth and safe transfer to Seattle Children’s. The same team of neonatologists and other specialists will be involved in your baby’s prenatal care and throughout their hospital stay.
Read how Knox got care for his abnormal heart rhythm before and after his birth.
Dedicated follow-up for complex conditions
Many babies born too early or with complex conditions will need care throughout childhood. We follow up long after your child’s NICU stay. To support your child’s health and quality of life, we offer specialized programs for concerns related to the nervous system and lungs and specific conditions like congenital diaphragmatic hernia.
“Everything was taken care of for us at Seattle Children’s... All I had to think about was my baby.”
— DJ’s mom Angela McCulloch
DJ was transferred from Tacoma to Seattle Children’s soon after birth for surgery and care in our NICU. Our team is experienced in complex neonatal surgery to fix a wide range of birth defects.
Conditions We Treat
Our multidisciplinary team is experienced in treating every complex condition your child may have. In the Level IV NICU at Seattle Children's, we treat babies with rare and complex medical and surgical conditions, including:
- Birth asphyxia
- Birth defects of the heart
- Bone tumors and soft tissue tumors
- Brain malformations, including arteriovenous malformations (AVM)
- Bronchopulmonary dysplasia
- Congenital diaphragmatic hernia
- Conjoined twins
- Gastroschisis
- Genetic conditions
- Genital differences
- Hydrocephalus
- Intestinal atresia
- (such as Bladder exstrophy)
- Micrognathia (Robin sequence)
- Myelomeningocele and all other birth defects of the brain and spine
- Necrotizing enterocolitis
- Neonatal
- Neonatal stroke
- Neuroblastoma
- Omphalocele
- Respiratory distress syndrome (PDF)
- Short bowel syndrome
- Spina bifida
- Tracheoesophageal fistula
Getting Neonatology Care at Seattle Children’s
In addition to providing care at Seattle Children’s Level IV NICU, our neonatologists staff hospitals across our region — ensuring families have access to high-quality, specialized neonatal care closer to home.