High School and college students may be done with graduation, but the NICU just had a graduation ceremony of their own.
Neonatal nurse Melissa Jordan and her colleagues at CaroMont Regional Medical Center in Gastonia, North Carolina decided to throw a graduation party for all the little ones on their way out of NICU. Since that first celebration, Jordan and the staff at Birthplace, a birthing and family care center at CaroMont, have had a miniature ceremony for every baby born 6 weeks or more premature.
Bella Baby Photography
“We make sure these babies are being fed and cared and loved for, and of course that the parents get to bond with them while they’re in the NICU,” Jordan said in an interview.
Bella Baby Photography
When the babies are finally discharged, Jordan and her staff hold a small graduation ceremony for the baby and their family.
Bella Baby Photography
The personalized graduation caps come in a variety of colors, but each celebrates the time spent, and victories won while in NICU.
Bella Baby Photography
“When I started the program, I called Bella Baby Photography – they take pictures of all our babies going home – and asked if they could come photograph the NICU grads, and the photographer actually offered to give these pictures to the parents free of charge,” Jordan said.
Bella Baby Photography
Jordan was inspired to start the program 6 months ago, when she wanted to do something special for a baby who had been with her the NICU for 62 days.
“We had a baby born at 29 weeks gestation so he was in the NICU for over two months, and when he was finally ready to discharge, the family came and brought this onesie that said ‘NICU grad’,” Jordan said.
After seeing the onesie, Jordan said she wanted to make the day even more special – so she went home and made a personalized graduation cap out of construction paper.
Bella Baby Photography
“The day he got discharged, we gathered staff and we went in singing and dancing and gave him his cap – and his parents just smiled ear to ear – that’s when we knew it was something we wanted to keep doing for other families,” Jordan said.
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“It’s just for babies born at 34 weeks of gestation or earlier – or 6 weeks premature – so they’ve been at the NICU for a while and when they leave it’s a huge accomplishment not only for the baby but parents as well,” Jordan said.
Bella Baby Photography
“The program was started as a way to celebrate this milestone in the babies’ lives” and to give both parents and children something beautiful to look back on when times get tough. After their fight for life in the NICU, these little ones should have no problem with the realities of life.”
“Leaving the NICU can be joyful but also scary and nerve-wracking, so this was our way of bringing a little normalcy to taking the baby home,” Jordan said.
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“Eventually, we hope to make a wall of graduates with these photos because it can also help give new parents in the NICU a little hope and reassurance,” Jordan said.
Even small victories at the NICU are something to celebrate. These precious little lives are in good hands with wonderful people like Jordan around. Every step toward discharge is a step in the right direction… and Jordan and her cohorts will be there every step of the way.
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