In Monmouth Medical Center's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) the lights are set low and noise is kept to a minimum.
A closer look at this subdued setting quickly reveals that much of the activity occurs among the neonatal intensive care unit's sea of incubators and sophisticated medical equipment. This is the place where babies who may weigh less than one pound and may have been born up to four months too early are given a chance to live and thrive thanks to the round-the-clock treatment they receive from highly-trained neonatologists, pediatricians, nurses, respiratory therapists and other professionals during the first critical hours, days and even months of life.
The commitment of these caregivers and the Center's low-key ambiance soften the high-tech environment into warmer surroundings that foster the healing, growth and development of these tiny, fragile newborns.
About our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
Our 23-bassinet NICU is a state designated level III perinatal/neonatal intensive care nursery, treating over 500 patients each year for conditions such as prematurity, low birth weight, acute life-threatening illnesses and congenital disorders, as well as providing delicate surgeries.
The NICU has a full array of highly sophisticated technology and the caregivers focus on responding to a premature or high-risk infant’s needs in a precisely measured and appropriate manner.
Mothers who are at high risk for complications during pregnancy come to Monmouth Medical Center for our specialized prenatal care and take comfort in the fact that, if their baby needs special care after birth, our NICU is among the best in the state and is equipped to diagnose and treat a variety of problems.
Our Regional Newborn Extension Program provides follow up care for infants after they have been discharged from the NICU. The Program staff evaluates development milestones and connects parents with recourses for specialized developmental interventions if needed.
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Our Caring, Highly-Specialized Team
 Our Neonatal Care Team includes neonatologists, nurses, respiratory therapists and other medical professionals who represent the full scope of pediatric subspecialties. Our team is supported by a fully accredited pediatric residency program and benefits greatly from being part of a teaching institution that has access to the most current treatments and procedures.
Our physicians and nurses spend a great deal of time with the families of their tiny patients; talking not only about medical problems, but helping them through this often difficult time.
Many times, parents whose infant must remain in the Center for a long period of time may find it difficult to believe that the child is really theirs. Helping parents to become intimately involved in the care of their newborn is one of the priorities of the Neonatal care team. This way they can begin building a relationship with their baby - nurturing the strong attachment that can only be felt between parent and child.
Carlos Alemany, MD, Medical Director
Diane M. Attardi MD
Susan M. Hudome, M.D.
Kirby D. Rekedal, MD
Cristen E. Glende, RNC
Clinical Director - Regional Newborn Center
Ana M. Pinto, RN
Clinical Director, Mother/Baby Unit
Kathleen J. Wilson, RN, BS, CCE
Administrative Director of Women's and Children's Services
Carlos Alemany, MD
Medical Director, Regional Newborn Center
Dr. Alemany joined the family of physicians at Monmouth Medical Center in 1993. He obtained his medical degree at Ponce School of Medicine at Ponce, Puerto Rico in 1987. From there he moved to San Antonio, Texas, where he completed a residency in Pediatrics at the University of Texas Health Science Center. This was followed by a fellowship in Neonatal–Perinatal Medicine at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. He is Board certified in Pediatrics and Neonatal Perinatal Medicine.
Dr. Alemany assumed the role Medical Director for the Regional Newborn Center in 1999. Dr. Alemany has an appointment as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Department of Pediatrics, Drexel University College of Medicine. In addition, Dr. Alemany is the co-chair of the TQI committee of the Regional Perinatal Consortium for Monmouth and Ocean counties.
Diane M. Attardi, M.D.
 Dr. Attardi joined the Monmouth Neonatal Group at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, N.J. in July 1999. She received a B.A. from Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. in 1989 and then attended Hahnemann University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA from 1989-93. She pursued further training in pediatrics in Philadelphia (residency at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children between 1993-96) and in neonatology (fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital between 1996-99). Dr. Attardi is Board Certified in Pediatrics and in the subspecialty of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine. As a member of a team of four neonatologists she cares for acutely ill infants in the “RNC” or Regional Newborn Center and is also active in resident, neonatal nurse practitioner and medical student education and mentoring. Dr. Attardi holds an appointment as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Department of Pediatrics, Drexel University College of Medicine. Currently she is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the AAP Section of Perinatal Medicine and the American Medical Association. Dr. Attardi is also part of the New Jersey Fetal-Infant Mortality Review Program. Dr. Attardi introduced and promoted the use of “Kangaroo Care”, a form of skin-to-skin holding of infants by their caregivers, and continues to have a strong interest in the role of developmental care and family centered practices in the management of all premature and fragile term neonates.
Susan M. Hudome, M.D.
Director of the Pediatrics Group
Dr. Hudome received a BS in Biology from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, and then attended Penn State University School of Medicine, Hershey, PA from 1984-1988. She pursued internship training in Pediatrics at Duke University in Durham, NC, and then residency in Pediatrics at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, AR. She remained there for chief residency, finishing in 1992. Dr. Hudome then completed Neonatology fellowship training at Penn State University from 1992-1995. Dr. Hudome is Board Certified in Pediatrics, and in the subspecialty of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine. In September 2006, Dr. Hudome became the Medical Director of the Regional Newborn Center; she joins the team of four neonatologists in caring for acutely ill infants in the “RNC.” Dr. Hudome is active in resident, neonatal nurse practitioner and medical student education and mentoring. She holds an appointment as a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Department of Pediatrics, Drexel University College of Medicine. Currently she is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the AAP Section of Perinatal Medicine. Dr. Hudome is an active member of the Institutional Review Board, which oversees research activities at Monmouth Medical Center. She is the site coordinator for the national Vermont–Oxford database, submitting data for research and quality assurance on babies from the intensive care nursery. Dr. Hudome is an active member of the boards for the Ronald McDonald House and Michael’s Feat. Both of these organizations provide much needed support services for families of sick babies cared for at Monmouth Medical Center.
Kirby D. Rekedal, MD
 Board certified in Pediatrics and Neonatology, Dr. Rekedal is a graduate of St. Olaf College in Minnesota, where he majored in philosophy and spent time studying classical philosophy at Oxford. Dr. Rekedal obtained a graduate degree in philosophy at Johns Hopkins, and then went on to the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He did his internship and residency in Pediatrics at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, and fellowship in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine at Yale. He has been a member of the department since 1986, serving as chief of neonatology from 1989 to 1998, as acting chair from 1999 to 2000, and as residency program director from 1999 to 2004. He is currently active as an attending neonatologist, and his special interests include faculty level training in the Brazelton Touchpoints model and ethics. He is actively involved in research regarding the long term outcomes of extremely premature newborns. Dr. Rekedal is responsible for the pediatric medical ethics curriculum.
Dahlia Annmarie Hall, MD, MPH, FAAP
Clinical Assistant Professor
 Board certified in pediatrics, Dr. Hall received her undergraduate degree from Tufts University, Jackson College in Medford, Massachusetts, her Masters Degree in Public Health - Epidemiology from Columbia University School of Public Health in New York and medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts.
Dr. Hall completed her residency in pediatrics at NYU Medical Center, NYU School of Medicine in New York and was chief pediatric resident at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York; an NYU Medical Center affiliate.
Certified in Pediatric Advance Life Support (PALS) and Neonatal Advance Life Support (NALS), Dr. Hall is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Drexel University School of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Cristen E. Glende, RNC
Clinical Director - Regional Newborn Center
Cristen has been a member of the Monmouth Medical Center nursing staff for nearly 10 years, starting as a member of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) nursing team. She is a Registered Nurse, Certified Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP) instructor, certified in Basic Life Support (BLS) by the American Heart Association and has her National Certification (RNC) in Neonatal Nursing. Cristen is also a member of the National Association of Neonatal Nurses. Cristen received her Associate of Applied Science in Nursing degree from Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, NJ and is pursuing her BSN/MSN at Thomas Edison State College.
Ana M. Pinto, RN
Clinical Director, Mother/Baby Unit
A member of the Monmouth Medical Center nursing staff for the past 20 years, Ana is a key member of the Regional Newborn Center nursing staff and provides post-partum care and lactation support to mothers as well as newborn care to infants from birth to discharge. Ana is CRP certified and has earned her National Certification on Women's Health Care and Newborn Resuscitation Certification (NRC).
Kathleen J. Wilson, RN, BS, CCE
Administrative Director of Women's and Children's Services
With more than 30 years of experience, Kathy spent 6 years as the Clinical Director of Patient Care Services for Monmouth Medical Center's Mother/Baby Unit before being promoted to the position of Administrative Director of Women's and Children's Services. Kathy earned her Bachelor in Health Administration from St. Joseph's College in Brooklyn, New York and Associates degree in Applied Science in Nursing from The Long Island College Hospital and Associates degree in Applied Science from Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn, New York. She is a member of several professional organizations, such as the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN), Regional Perinatal Consortium of Monmouth and Ocean Counties (member of the Perinatal Education Subcommittee). Kathy is also a certified Childbirth Educator, trained in Touchpoints and is a trained Lactation Resource.
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State-of-the-Art Technology Leads to Better Outcomes
Because the Regional Newborn Center is part of a teaching hospital; we have the full array of highly sophisticated technology at our fingertips. The Center is a leader in this highly-specialized field, attaining a high degree of success over its long history of treating infants with a variety of complex conditions. This is reflected by the fact that we have one of the highest infant survival rates among neonatal ICU's in New Jersey - over 98 percent of babies who receive care here are able to grow and develop so that they can be brought home by their parents. Our small, tightly knit group of physicians and highly trained nursing staff make it possible to deliver the highest level of personalized care.
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S.T.A.B.L.E. Nurse Training
Our nursing staff is trained to follow the nationally-recognized S.T.A.B.L.E (Sugar, Temperature, Airway, Blood Pressure, Lab Work and Emotional Support) guidelines for evaluating a newborn in his/her first few hours of life. S.T.A.B.L.E is the first neonatal education program to focus exclusively on the post-resuscitation/pre-transport stabilization care of sick newborns. This training is endorsed by the March of Dimes and is considered a critical part of assessing the health and medical needs of sick newborns with the goal of delivering the most appropriate care as quickly as possible.
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Brazelton Touchpoints Center
The Children’s Hospital at Monmouth also was the first in central New Jersey to introduce a Brazelton Touchpoints Center, a Children’s Hospital Boston-based training program built on the belief that establishing and maintaining relationships with parents is the basis of preventive care. The program, which provides health care and child care providers, educators and social service professionals with effective and proven tools to support infants and parents at the beginning of their lives together, is based on decades of research in child development, years of clinical experience, and on the power of building relationships between providers and family members. Led by pediatrician Nancy Deacon, D.O., the training provides a framework and skills that can be incorporated into individual practices, across institutions and at the community level.
To learn more about the Touchpoints Center at The Children’s Hospital at Monmouth, call 732-923-7250.
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Kangaroo Care Benefits Mom and Baby
Parents are encouraged to spend as many hours as possible with their baby, even when the infant is too fragile to be held and must remain in an incubator. Once the baby is medically stable, the family is encouraged to strengthen the physical and emotional bonds with their child by holding or even experiencing what is known as “Kangaroo Care”. This method of holding the infant allows for skin to skin contact between the baby and the parents.
Click here to learn more about Kangaroo Care
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Ronald McDonald House
The Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center is one of only three hospitals in New Jersey served by a Ronald McDonald House, which provides accommodations for families of seriously ill children who are being treated at Monmouth and other area hospitals. And Monmouth was the first hospital in New Jersey to partner with the Ronald McDonald House to offer a Ronald McDonald Family Room that is designed to “expand the house into the hospital." A suite of rooms located adjacent to Monmouth's Mary Stavola Children's Pavilion, the Ronald McDonald Family Room provides many of the amenities found within the Ronald McDonald House, including separate kitchen, laundry and shower facilities as well as rooms for watching television, computer use or just quiet reflection.
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C.H.A.S.E. for Life
Founded in 2005, C.H.A.S.E. for Life is a nonprofit organization dedicated to saving children's lives. Its mission is to promote the education of infant/child CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver by raising safety awareness within communities throughout the country. The Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center hopes to change state legislation so that all first-time mothers will be required take a hands-on infant/child CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver class or watch an instructional video before being discharged with their newborn. The C.H.A.S.E. video is shown on the Hospital’s in-house television channel and all new mothers are strongly encouraged to view the film. The Hospital is also integrating infant/child CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver education into the community through free clinics and workshops as well as distributing instructional resources at no change.
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Michael’s Feat
Parents of newborns also receive support from Michael’s Feat, a local non-profit organization established to support, give comfort and ease the burden for parents caring for seriously ill newborns in Monmouth and Ocean County New Jersey.
The fund was created in loving memory of Adam and Dana Puharic’s newborn son, Michael, who lost his life to a serious chromosome disorder. Michael’s Feat provides support through education about seriously ill newborns and provides benefits to parents to assist in caring for their ill children.
Dr. Susan Hudome, Neonatalogist at Monmouth Medical Center notes, “Michael's Feat has been invaluable to our families. From providing overnight bags for moms to needed equipment and supplies for babies at discharge, the resources for our parents have been greatly improved. Families under tremendous stress can turn to this organization for support in a difficult environment. Many babies have been able to benefit from the generosity of these people already, with many more to follow."
Click here to learn more.
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