Elizabeth and Colton’s Story

Elizabeth and her newborn son Colton were the first patients to use the new NICU couplet care room in the Olsrud Family Women’s & Children’s Hospital at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center.

Elizabeth and Damion grew up in Grants Pass and now live in Glendale with their four-year-old son Christopher. Three years ago, after the birth of their first child, Elizabeth was diagnosed with Lupus, which had unknowingly created complications in her first pregnancy. This time around, with her diagnosis, they knew she was high-risk and that their baby would come early. She immediately had concerns about what that would mean for their family post-partum.

When Elizabeth arrived at the hospital on June 12, complications from her Lupus were causing severe headaches. While the baby was doing alright, it was clear that she was not. After a couple of days in the Olsrud Family Women’s and Children’s Hospital, providers determined that an emergency c-section was necessary.  Different from her first delivery, Elizabeth was awake for the procedure and Damion was able to be with her the whole time—and her new baby Colton was never far from them.

Elizabeth got to experience a lot of firsts that she didn’t have with her previous delivery: to hear her baby’s first cry, the first to hold her baby skin-to-skin, and the first to experience NICU couplet care at Asante.

The thought of being separated from her baby for days while he was in the NICU gave Elizabeth a lot of anxiety before her birth. However, when the option to stay in the couplet care room was made available to her, she was relieved and enthusiastic. To be able to be in the same room as Colton, to wake in the middle of the night and see him playing with his toes or read his oxygen levels, helped her feel like she was part of his day from the very beginning. Instead of worrying or taking many trips down the hall to see her newborn, Elizabeth was getting good sleep and enjoying watching her son make progress every day. When Damion and Christopher came to visit, being in the private couplet care room meant they got to bond together as a family—all while Colton receives the important care he needs.

“When the family is allowed to be part of the process, they can feel more comfortable and confident when it’s time for the baby to be discharged home.  The Sheets family expressed so much thanks for the blessing of this opportunity. The community and local donors need to know that their contributions made all of this possible and it’s a real game-changer for these patients.” Maryann, couplet care and family newborn postpartum nurse shared with us what it was like to provide this specialized care for Elizabeth and Colton, “When we bridge the gap between departments and all work together, we can accomplish good things for the sake of our patients, making us all better caregivers, because that’s what it’s all about.”

Linda has worked as a NICU and family newborn nurse with Asante for 39 years, and she’s seen a lot of changes in care over those decades, but NICU couplet care has been one of the most significant. “The family who was our “first” couplet care was the perfect family to initiate this new endeavor. Their gratitude & grateful attitude for this new concept allowed me to see it from the family’s point of view.  It was a thrill to get to be a small part of their hospital journey.”

Asante is happy to offer NICU couplet care at the Olsrud’s Family Women’s and Children’s Hospital as just one more way we contribute to positive outcomes for the health of our community.