Beirut, 17 October 2018: The American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC) was awarded with the certification in the Newborn Individualized Developmental Care Program (NIDCAP). The achievement, first-of-its-kind in Lebanon, is a major step for the Developmental Care, Early Intervention, and Follow up Program (DCEIP) of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at AUBMC. The certified team will provide comprehensive approach to support infant development and promote individualized care in the NICU which hosts preterm and term infants requiring advanced technology to survive.
“Early experiences in life are crucial for brain development. These are particularly important for infants born preterm and those admitted to the hospital at birth”, said DCEIP Director Dr. Lama Charafeddine. “The aim of using the NIDCAP approach is to limit the stressful experiences and alleviate their effects on developing infants. We also want to give those infants the chance to achieve their best potential for growth and development”, she concluded.
NIDCAP professionals spend time observing infant behavior to understand their situation and provide them with individualized care that benefits developmental outcome. Following the NIDCAP approach, doctors and nurses shift their care to a supportive role for infants and families. This approach also helps parents bond with their infant, which ultimately promotes faster recovery and growth.
This service falls under the AUBMC vision and mission. The neonatology unit at AUBMC is the first to provide newborn individualized care promoting neurodevelopmental outcome of premature infants and supporting their families. This program comes along establishing centers of excellence within the division of neonatology following the department of pediatrics’ strategy.
NIDCAP certification is endorsed by the NIDCAP Federation International (NFI) which assures the quality of NIDCAP education, training and certification for professionals and hospital systems. The NFI vision is to have a global society in which all hospitalized newborns and their families receive care in the evidence-based NIDCAP model.
About AUBMC
Since 1902, AUBMC has been providing the highest standards of care to patients across Lebanon and the region. It is also the teaching hospital for the Faculty of Medicine at AUB (established in 1867), which has trained generations of medical students and physicians, and whose graduates can be found at leading institutions around the world. AUBMC is the only medical institution in the Middle East to have earned the five international accreditations of JCI, Magnet, CAP, ACGME-I and JACIE attesting to its superior standards in patient-centered care, nursing, pathology/laboratory services and graduate medical education.
The Faculty of Medicine has graduated over 4,000 medical students and physicians; the Rafic Hariri School of Nursing provides excellent education for the nursing staff, and the Medical Center meets the healthcare needs of over 360,000 patient visits annually.
About NIDCAP
NIDCAP is a method that takes into consideration the stressful, painful and traumatic experiences preterm and term infants might go through during their stay in the NICU. NIDCAP is endorsed by the NIDCAP Federation International (NFI); it assures the quality of NIDCAP education, training and certification for professionals and hospital systems. The NFI vision is to have a global society in which all hospitalized newborns and their families receive care in the evidence-based NIDCAP model.
For more information please visit our website www.aubmc.org or contact:
The AUBMC Office of Communications at 0096 1 350000 ext. 4732 –
Email: [email protected]