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Nursing and NICU Evacuation Activities

When a mother gives birth to a new baby, she probably does not expect to have her baby need the services of a neonatal intensive care unit, or NICU. Even more rare would be the necessity to evacuate that NICU for any reason. However, as in the case of Hurricane Katrina and 16 NICU babies (see Reference 2), those situations do happen and the NICU nurses have to be well-prepared for that eventuality to prevent chaos and more tragedy. NICU nurses must prepare ahead of time so they'll know instinctively what activities need to take place for a successful and safe evacuation.

  1. Training/Preparation

    • The most important activity for NICU evacuation is preparation before the need for evacuation arises. NICU nurses should daily be aware of their responsibilities should an evacuation become necessary. On a monthly basis, they should check the levels of necessary evacuation supplies and ensure that proper levels are maintained; and on a quarterly or as-needed basis when contact information or personnel changes take place, NICU nurses must keep contact lists up-to-date. Other training includes going over evacuation routes and supplies that are needed during evacuation and studying procedures such as hospital employee identification and marking a room when it has been emptied.

    Transportation

    • Transportation activities during an NICU evacuation are another duty that nurses are responsible for. This includes not only the act of transporting the patient and maintaining patient records during that transportation, but also arranging transportation, both within the hospital and out of the hospital, to another location. Nurses may be responsible for acquiring and scheduling transportation through hospital-owned vehicles or other means, such as helicopter or ambulance. Obviously, the nurse is also responsible for any emergent care during the course of transportation.

    Notify Family

    • Since NICU patients are unable to speak for themselves, it is especially important that their parents or legal guardians be made aware of their evacuation status. This the responsibility of an NICU nurse during the course of the evacuation. Not only must a nurse notify the family of the evacuation plan on a proactive basis, but there should also be an evacuation liaison on duty to answer incoming calls or questions from family members (see Reference 1).

    Patient Identification

    • Prior to the actual evacuation move, an NICU nurse should identify each infant to ensure there are no patient mix-ups or lost children. Illinois Emergency Medical Services for Children suggests a marking on the child's body, in addition to traditional wristbands. The organization suggests using a transparent bandage that would ideally be affixed to the child's abdomen and includes the child's name, birth date, medical records number and the mother's name. It also suggests putting markings on the child's diaper or on attached medical equipment (see Reference 1).

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