WILMINGTON, NC – New Hanover Regional Medical Center Betty H. Cameron Women's and Children's Hospital has been designated as a 2016 Center of Excellence in Education and Training for Substance-Exposed Infants and Their Families by the Vermont Oxford Network (VON).
The designation is given to hospitals that have completed standardized training and education to improve the quality and safety of care for patients with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) and their family members. Infants with NAS show severe signs of opioid withdrawal and often have higher rates of neonatal complications and longer hospital stays.
“The team at NHRMC Betty H. Cameron Women’s and Children’s Hospital has worked diligently to ensure our physicians, nurses and staff provide compassionate, safe and effective care to NAS patients and their families,” said Robert DiGiuseppe, MD, neonatologist for Coastal Carolina Neonatology at NHRMC. “Receiving this designation is a profound reminder of the education, training and dedication required to treat an important and vulnerable population of substance-exposed babies so they can live healthy lives.”
To achieve the VON Center of Excellence award, hospitals were required to train at least 85 percent of their designated care team using live webinars, improvement programs, analysis and benchmarking with other hospitals.
NHRMC exceeded that goal by training 302 interdisciplinary healthcare providers, representing 88 percent of the team caring for NAS patients and their families.
For more information, visit www.nhrmc.org/services/pediatrics.