Neonatal Intensive Care (NICU)
We provide the highest level of intensive care to sick and premature newborns in our neonatal intensive care and special care nursery units.
Akron Children's Neonatology was ranked #26 in the Newsweek and Statista America's Best Children's Hospitals 2024 - Newsweek Rankings.
Learn more...About Neonatology (NICU)
Among the common conditions we treat are breathing, intestinal and surgical problems, congenital heart defects, prematurity, and very low birth weight. To do this, we provide a quiet and nurturing environment that closely mimics the womb with subdued lighting and noise; slow, gentle motions when treating preemies; and swaddling to provide a sense of security.
Research has shown that these practices result in:
- fewer days on the ventilator
- earlier feeding success
- shorter hospital stays
- reduction in complications
- improved neuro-developmental outcomes during the first 18 months of life
Once settled in the unit, your baby will receive care tailored to their specific needs. We are not only committed to providing the most advanced neonatal care, but also to providing you with the emotional and practical support you need through parent mentors and lactation consultants.
We also encourage Kangaroo Care, or skin-to-skin contact between parent and newborn. This has been shown to stabilize vital signs, such as heart and respiratory rates, and lessen the need for oxygen, while also encouraging bonding.
In addition, we’re a member of the Vermont Oxford Network, a data-sharing collaboration of neonatal professionals worldwide, and one of only 12 centers to be part of the network's quality improvement initiative called, "Your Ideal NICU."
NICU, Akron Children's
Akron Children's NICUKay Jewelers Pavilion
177 West Exchange Street
Level 6
Akron, Ohio 44302
Map & directions
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Department: 330-543-8352
NICU, Summa Health
Akron Children's NICU at Summa HealthSumma Health - Akron Campus
141 North Forge Street
Akron, Ohio 44304
Fax: 330-375-7416
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Department: 330-375-3528
NICU, Canton
Akron Children's NICU at Aultman HospitalAultman Birth Center
2600 Sixth Street Southwest
Bedford Building, 4th floor
Canton, Ohio 44710
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Department: 330-363-5433
NICU, Boardman
Akron Children's NICU at St. ElizabethSt. Elizabeth Boardman Hospital
8401 Market Street
Boardman, Ohio 44512
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Department: 330-729-4250
Special Care Nursery, Boardman
Akron Children's Special Care NurserySpecial Care Nursery
6505 Market St.
Boardman, Ohio 44512
Fax: 330-746-8681
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Department: 330-746-8680
Special Care Nursery, Lorain
Akron Children's Special Care Nursery at Mercy LorainMercy Health - Veard Family Birthing Center
3700 Kolbe Road
Lorain, Ohio 44053
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Department: 440-960-4000
Special Care Nursery, Warren
Akron Children's Special Care Nursery at St. Joseph HospitalSt. Joseph Hospital
667 Eastland Ave. SE
Warren, Ohio 44484
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Department: 330-841-2365
Special Care Nursery, Wooster
Akron Children's Special Care Nursery at Wooster Community HospitalWooster Community Hospital
1761 Beall Ave.
Wooster, Ohio 44691
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Department: 330-263-8100
Marya Strand, MD, MS
Chair, Department of Neonatal and Perinatal Medicine; Thomas R. & Mary Lynn Crowley Endowed Chair in Neonatology and Maternal Fetal Medicine; Director, Division of Neonatology; Neonatologist-Perinatologist; Maternal Fetal Medicine Specialist
Melissa Swaney, MSN, APRN-CNP
Senior Director, Neonatal Advanced Practice Providers; Neonatal Nurse Practitioner
Conditions and Treatments:
birth defect, failure to thrive, hyperbilirubinemia, jaundice, respiratory distress syndrome, retinopathy of prematurity, transient tachypnea-newborn
