Meet Your Team

Seattle Children’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Our NICU care team has special training working with critically ill newborns and their families. We will work with you to make decisions and treatment plans for your baby.

The care team in Seattle Children’s NICU includes:

• Neonatologists (doctors specializing in newborn care)
• Neonatal nurse practitioners and physician assistants
• Nurses
• Respiratory therapists
• Pharmacists
• Dietitians
• Physical and occupational therapists
• Social workers
• Lactation Services

The NICU team works closely with Seattle Children's pediatric surgeons, cardiac intensivists, cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, neurosurgeons, otolaryngologists, neurologists, pulmonologists, nephrologists, geneticists and other specialists to provide coordinated care for newborns with complex problems. Learn more about the different roles on your child's healthcare team.

NICU leadership team

• Robert DiGeronimo, MD, medical director
• Zeenia Billimoria, MD, associate medical director
• Elizabeth Jacobson, MD, director, quality improvement
• Deb Lester, associate chief nurse and senior director, Critical Care
• Catherine Wagner, RN, BSN, NICU clinical practice manager
• Erin Peters, NICU clinical practice manager
• Melissa Koll, ARNP, supervisor, neonatal nurse practitioners
• Karen Kelly, MN, RN, clinical nurse specialist
• Lynn Lingen, BSN, RN, RNC-NIC, NICU educator
• Maura Sandrock, MS, RD, NICU dietitian
• Lori Chudnofsky, NICU director

Neonatologists in Seattle Children’s NICU

• Maneesh Batra, MD, MPH
• Zeenia Billimoria, MD
• Robert DiGeronimo, MD
• Meenakshi Dutta, MD
• Kendell German, MD
• Megan Gray, MD
• Sarah Handley, MD  
• Anna Hedstrom, MD
• Craig Jackson, MD, MHA
• Elizabeth Jacobson, MD 
• Sandra (Sunny) Juul, MD, PhD
• Janessa Law, MD
• Ulrike Mietzsch, MD
• Thelben Mullett, MD
• Colin Parker, MD
• Jose Perez, MD
• Krystle Perez, MD  
• Mihai Puia-Dumitrescu, MD, MPH
• Taylor Sawyer, DO, MEd  
• Kendra Smith, MD
• Rachel Umoren, MB ChB, MS
• Linda Wallen, MD
• Elliott Weiss, MD
• Stephen Welty, MD

Our Neonatologists at Affiliate Hospitals’ NICUs

We provide care for sick newborns in the NICUs at the University of Washington, Providence Regional Medical Center, Swedish Medical Center, CHI Franciscan Health, Highline Medical Center and UW Medicine Valley Medical Center. These include:

• Shilpi Chabra, MD
• Toby Cohen, MD
• Meenakshi Dutta, MD
• Cyril Engmann, MD
• Sarah Handley, MD  
• Anna Hedstrom, MD
• Janessa Law, MD
• Christina Long, MD
• Davia Loren, MD 
• Dennis Mayock, MD
• Thelben Mullett, MD
• Sara Neches, MD
• Michael Neufeld, MD, MPH
• Colin Parker, MD
• Krystle Perez, MD  
• Mihai Puia-Dumitrescu, MD, MPH
• Angel Rios, MD
• Thomas Strandjord, MD  
• Rachel Umoren, MB ChB, MS
• Stephen Welty, MD
• Elliott Weiss, MD
• Gregory Valentine, MD

Seattle Children's neonatologists and neonatal nurse practitioners and physician assistants also care for patients at CHI Franciscan Health, Providence Regional Medical Center and UW Medicine Northwest Hospital and Medical Center. The leaders and their medical director partners of that program are:

• Providence Regional Medical Center Everett: Vanessa Rothstein, PA-C, Michael Neufeld, MD, MPH, and Anna Hedstrom, MD
• UW Medicine Northwest Hospital and Medical Center: Maya Kaneyasu, ARNP, Angel Rios, MD and Thomas Strandjord, MD
• Seattle Children's Hospital: Melissa Koll, ARNP, Robert DiGeronimo, MD, and Zeenia Billimoria, MD
• CHI Franciscan Health: Kimberly Gustafson, ARNP, Stephen Welty, MD and Meenakshi Dutta, MD
• UW Medicine Valley Medical Center: Carol Otto, ARNP, Christina Marieke Long, DO, and Shilpi Chabra, MD

Critical Care Transport

Our Critical Care Transport program partners with Airlift Northwest to provide the specialized care needed to safely transport critically ill infants by ground or air. We transport more than 600 newborn patients each year. A NICU nurse and a respiratory therapist always ride along with the newborn on critical care transports. This team is in frequent contact with a neonatologist throughout the transport process to ensure the highest quality of patient care. The leaders of the Critical Care Transport program who specialize in transporting newborns and infants are:

• Bob DiGeronimo, NICU medical director
• Chris Baker, nurse manager, Critical Care Transport Services

Leaders in improving patient care and outcomes

Our faculty hold national leadership and research roles that strengthen our patient care and outcomes.

• Drs. Sandra Juul and Dennis Mayock work with the HEAL trial and other clinical research on improving brain development in premature babies.
• Learn more about research and advances.

Learn more about your baby’s trip to the NICU (video 5:10)

Neonatal Outreach

The Neonatal Outreach Program provides education and consultation for community healthcare professionals to increase awareness of our neonatal services and ensure that babies get their best possible start in life.