We are excited to announce that our July support group will focus on “navigating the NICU” and we have special guest Logan Shakespear joining us. Logan is a NICU nurse at Primary Children’s Hospital in Utah. She has been working as a NICU nurse for 2 years and has been involved in the care of 4 babies with Omphaloceles. Logan is passionate about her job and helping babies and their families. As always, everyone from the omphalocele community is welcome- experienced parents with older O babies to share their knowledge and experiences, pregnant moms and their families, grandparents, friends, adult omphalocele survivors- you are all welcome and an important part of our groups! Please join us Sunday July 3rd at 2pm eastern for our virtual group.
“Hello Everyone! My name is Logan Shakespear. A little bit about myself, I was born in Henderson Nevada and grew up in St. George Utah. I’m a lover of movies, dogs, baking, being an aunt, and taking care of babies. I attended college at Southern Utah University where during my first three years of school I worked as a certified nursing assistant in a memory care unit and cared for individuals with Alzheimer’s and dementia. My last year of college, and final year of nursing school, I got a job as an licensed practical nurse doing pediatric home health and hospice where I took care of the sweetest little 3 year old, who was once herself a patient in Primary Childrens NICU where I am currently working. I was hired in the NICU at Primary Childrens hospital right out of nursing school and have been there for the last two years.
Primary Childrens NICU is classified as a level 4 NICU because we take surgical cases and newborns in need of ECMO from Utah and the surrounding states. We see newborns with the rarest of the rare diagnoses and genetic disorders as well as some of the sickest babies, but if any baby needs a surgical consult they come to us.
Some of these special babies we have the honor and privilege of caring for are babies born with Omphaloceles. In the last 2 years I have been in the NICU, I can recall about 7 cases of newborns born with omphaloceles. Out of those 7 newborns I have been able to care for about 4 of them. Plan of care is different for each baby, even babies with the same diagnoses. Some of the main aspects in plan of care for newborns with omphaloceles can be grouped within the following categories:
Providing the necessary respiratory support to counteract the pressure applied to the abdomen and diaphragm from the omphalocele itself.
Protection of the gastrointestinal tract (and other organs) encapsulated within the omphalocele. This also included aiding in the healing of skin over the omphalocele.
Nutritional support. Malrotation of the intestines can occur with an omphalocele making feeding intolerance a potential issue. Work of breathing may also affect feeding and growth. IV nutrients is often used in conjunction with breast milk or formula.
Temperature stability. Newborns can struggle with maintaining their internal temperature when they are born early or have associated medical issues. Omphaloceles provide greater surface area for baby to lose heat so maintaining temperatures in a safe range are assessed and managed regularly.
Genetic Consultations. Although some newborns have isolated cases of having an omphalocele only, sometimes these newborns have associated genetic anomalies and syndromes/disorders. We typically send genetic panels on top of thorough physical assessment and imaging for newborns with omphaloceles just to ensure we aren’t missing anything else.
Although as a medical team we have a pretty good idea on how to approach the plan of care for newborns born with omphaloceles, each baby is the leader of their care. Very rarely do we see “textbook” babies in our NICU and that is okay. Everyone involved is simply trying to do their best- the medical team, the baby themselves, the family. It’s a team effort. It takes a village to raise a baby. Part of the village for medically complex children include the nurses, doctors, and every other member of the interdisciplinary team. And we are all rooting for and supporting your child.
I love my job. I love caring for these beautiful babies. I love meeting and becoming friends with the parents and families of these babies. I may only have 2 years of nursing experience within a NICU, but these babies have been my life for these last 2 years. And it has been such an honor.”