Neonatal Transport Service

University Children’s Hospital at UC Irvine Medical Center provides swift intervention for mothers-to-be and newborns who need specialized critical care services. Over 450 patients are transferred each year.

Team approach

The Maternal-Fetal Transport Service is staffed by a multidisciplinary team of medical specialists who safely transfer critically ill newborns and expectant women experiencing pregnancy complications to UC Irvine Medical Center. The service deploys team members in ambulances specially equipped with a self-contained mobile intensive care environment.

After arrival at the medical center, newborns are immediately transferred the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Here, neonatologists–physicians specializing in the care of critically ill newborns—deliver swift medical intervention.

High-risk mothers-to-be are assessed and treated by perinatologists, doctors who are trained in the care of women experiencing difficult pregnancies.

The service is the only one of its kind in Orange County, and one of only six in California. The transport team regularly responds to emergencies outside of Orange County, including Los Angeles and the Inland Empire.

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Services

The Maternal-Fetal Transport Service is available around the clock, seven days a week, and provides:

• A response team comprising a physician and nurse or respiratory therapist, as well as dedicated drivers
• Ambulances equipped with specialized isolettes and life support for infants, and enhanced hydraulics for a smoother ride.
• A communications system that provides constant contact with the perinatalogists and neonatalogists at University Children’s Hospital at UC Irvine Medical Center
• Helicopter service to transport mothers-to-be and newborns from a wide geographic area to the medical center

 Highest level of care

UC Irvine Medical Center’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is one of only two Level III NICUs in Orange County. This means that our unit meets highly rigorous standards set by the state, and is staffed and equipped to care for newborn infants who are extremely premature, critically ill or require surgical intervention.

The Maternal-Fetal Program is Orange County’s only combined university-based program for both perinatology and neonatology. As a result of this collaborative approach, our Maternal-Fetal Program has achieved some the best outcomes in the nation for complicated pregnancies.