Weighing just three pounds and 15 ounces, the premature newborn was whisked from the delivery room to St. Luke's Cornwall Hospital’s Elaine Kaplan Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), becoming the first baby to be cared for by the NICU team. That was September 1, 1997, and her early arrival marked the beginning for the team of specialized physicians and nurses who have gone on to save over 2,000 babies. This was also the NICU’s first success story, with the baby discharged four weeks later. 

 

Each year, the children and families whose lives have been touched by the life-saving work of the NICU team are invited to a celebration hosted by the St. Luke's Cornwall Health System Foundation Auxiliary. This year’s event, the 11th Annual Graduate Birthday Party, was held recently at Chadwick Lake in Newburgh and was attended by more than 250 former patients and their families, as well as NICU staff, hospital board members, administrators, members of the Kaplan family and Sen. Bill Larkin. Several parents spoke emotionally about their positive NICU experiences, and staff members could be seen hugging youngsters and getting reacquainted with families.

 

Auxiliary President Joan DiTullo expressed joy in hosting the annual event. “This is a testament to the children and parents whose lives have been touched by SLCH’s neonatal intensive care unit, and to the dedicated caregivers who create miracles every day. We’re delighted so many families return each year to reconnect and celebrate.”

 

Named for the late Elaine Kaplan, a local philanthropist who, along with her family, identified the need for enhanced health care for infants in this community, the NICU is the only Level II unit in the region with a transport service for critically ill babies born at hospitals without neonatal expertise.

“It is through the support and vision of the Kaplan family that we are able to provide advanced treatment for critically ill babies,” said neonatologist Prabhakar Kocherlakota, M.D., known affectionately as Dr. KP to families and staff at SLCH.

 

The NICU team cares for premature infants and term newborns with infections, birth defects, breathing difficulties, and growth restriction. All babies -- those with complex medical issues or mild problems requiring a short stay for observation -- receive a high level of care in a compassionate environment. A leader in neonatal medicine, the unit was the first to regularly screen for hearing loss before it was mandated by New York state.