The American Academy of Pediatrics recognized its first two neonatal hospitals in the Neonatal Excellence Program: The University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital and SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in Missouri.
RT’s Three Key Takeaways:
- AAP Launches National Neonatal Excellence Program: The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has introduced a new national verification and designation program for hospitals, recognizing those that meet the highest standards of neonatal care across the United States.
- Comprehensive Neonatal Standards and Verification: The program builds on AAP’s established guidelines for neonatal care (Levels II, III, and IV), offering hospitals independent, third-party assessments to ensure they meet rigorous, evidence-based standards for neonatal intensive care.
- Improved Outcomes and Patient Safety: The University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital and SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in Missouri are the first to receive the national AAP neonatal designation.
The American Academy of Pediatrics announced the launch of a new national verification and designation program that recognizes hospitals with the highest levels of neonatal care. The Neonatal Excellence Program supports hospitals’ initiatives to provide newborns with access to the right expertise and resources, helping to improve outcomes, reduce disparities, increase transparency and advance health for all children.
The AAP is the leading authority in neonatal verification and designation, having developed the standards for each level of neonatal care as outlined in the AAP Policy Statement, Levels of Neonatal Care, the AAP book, Guidelines for Perinatal Care, and the national neonatal risk-appropriate care requirements, Standards for Levels of Neonatal Care: II, III, and IV. Since 2016, the AAP has successfully conducted third-party verification surveys in Texas, Georgia and Missouri, evaluating facility compliance with state-specific, risk-appropriate neonatal care standards. With the program’s new expansion, hospitals in all 50 states can now obtain an independent, third-party assessment by leading neonatal clinicians, demonstrating that their neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) meets the highest standards in neonatal care.
“Every child in every community deserves access to high-quality health care,” said NVP Medical Director Eric Eichenwald, MD, FAAP, chairperson of the AAP Committee on Fetus and Newborn. “By making this verification and designation process available to hospitals in every state, the American Academy of Pediatrics can support local communities to advance the level of newborn care they’re able to provide to families. This program emphasizes patient safety, quality and best practices. We want to see all babies thrive, and this program helps hospitals meet these goals to support families in their communities.”
While all states regulate healthcare facilities, specifications for levels of neonatal care and adherence to requirements vary widely. As of 2021, only half of states in the US had neonatal level-of-care policies, and only 20% of states required verification by a third-party agency or health official. Wide adoption of the Academy’s national risk-appropriate neonatal care standards and participation in the AAP Neonatal Excellence Program allows hospitals in states without state-specific policy or process to evaluate their level of neonatal care. By engaging with the AAP to achieve AAP neonatal verification and designation, it ensures infants receive care in a facility with the resources appropriate for their needs and condition.
Through comprehensive and consultative onsite surveys, hospitals can enhance their quality of care by demonstrating a sustained commitment to patient safety and quality improvement initiatives, driving better outcomes, optimizing clinical practices, and assuring adherence to evidence-based neonatal care standards. The University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital and SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in Missouri are the first to receive the national AAP neonatal designation.
“Stead Family Children’s has a long-standing global reputation in the care of extremely preterm infants and the emerging field of neonatal hemodynamics. We are honored to receive this neonatal designation, which reflects our team’s dedication to providing the highest level of care for our smallest and most critically ill newborns. This recognition reinforces our commitment to patient safety, quality improvement and ensuring every newborn receives the best possible start in life, and we applaud the AAP for their advocacy role in setting the standards for neonatal care across the United States,” said Patrick McNamara, MB, BCh, director of the Division of Neonatology at Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
“The verification process provided an invaluable opportunity for our hospital’s clinical and administrative teams to engage with national surveyors, highlighting our commitment to excellence in all aspects of patient care. This collaborative evaluation affirmed our dedication to patient safety and a culture of continuous improvement,” said Hossain Marandi, MD, MBA, FACHE, president of SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital and system vice president of Pediatric Services. “The surveyors recognized several areas of outstanding performance and also identified some opportunities for us to achieve even greater outcomes. We remain steadfast in our commitment to leveraging these insights to further enhance the care we provide to the children in our community.”
