b'THRIVE PROGRAM.After a NICU stay, care continues at our Thrive Program. For over 40 years, weve been helping your little miracle grow and thrive.Once a baby comes home from the hospital, the Thrive Program at Childrens Health provides specialized, comprehensive and ongoing follow-up care. Our interdisciplinary team of experts looks after a babys overall health and well-being until their fifth birthday.Our team offers personalized medical care from advanced practice staff (including 24/7after-hours access for urgent problems), under the supervision of an experienced pediatrician, with contributions from a clinical nutrition expert, developmental specialist, speech pathologist, child psychologist and social worker in Thrive, and in consultation with pediatric subspecialists, including ophthalmology; audiology; and speech, physical and occupational therapists, among others.The THRIVE Program has made a positive impact in pediatric health care:Decreasing ED and intensive care visits Saving $3,000 per patient, per yearRoy Heyne, M.D., Medical Director of the Thrive Program at Childrens Health and Professor at UT Southwestern, leads a team that serves as the primary medical care home for fragile babies through their fifth birthday.Shonquatta Parson, APRN, NNP, attends to a family from Tyler who traveled to Childrens Health for Level IV care. The goal with TeleNICU is to keep babies in their community hospitals, if possible.STEP THREE: HELP REFERRING HOSPITALS KEEP THEIR PATIENTS.We launched our TeleNICU in late 2013 with one partner site. We now have nine partners and are planning to add more in 2021.We have virtually examined more than 200 neonates so far with diagnoses as varied as difficulty with ventilator management to an evaluation of gut inflammation to assessment of congenital anomalies. About half of the patients have been able to stay in their home hospitals. This has saved tens of thousands of dollars without jeopardizing patient care.Just because our TeleNICU is advanced doesnt mean its expensive for partner hospitals. Their costsa one-time equipment purchase and a monthly service feeare quickly recouped and even mitigated by state of Texas funding. If a hospital retains just one neonate, they will have covered the costs of one years worth of TeleNICU fees, including the equipment.PUTTING PATIENTS FIRST.TeleNICU enables our team, our partner physicians and even the parents to put the needs of the infant first, Dr. Savani says.'