HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — Henrico Doctors’ Hospital is not admitting additional babies to its neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) after discovering three babies with unexplainable fractures in late November and December of this year.
The hospital, which is owned by HCA, issued an alert on its website announcing an “update to NICU safety measures,” and said it was pausing NICU admissions “out of an abundance of caution.”
A Virginia Department of Health spokesperson told CBS 6 that Henrico Doctors’ voluntarily paused NICU admissions “upon the recommendation of VDH.”
The hospital system said it “discovered that three babies in our Henrico Doctors’ Hospital NICU had unexplainable fractures” in late November and December of this year.
They added the incidents were “similar to an incident involving four babies in the summer of 2023.”
“While fractures occasionally happen with pre-term babies since they lack full fetal bone development, we are actively working to determine how these fractures occurred,” officials with HCA wrote.
WTVR
The hospital system said it initiated a thorough investigation, informed families, and contacted the proper authorities and regulatory agencies.
They also said they provided video footage to proper authorities and have healthcare professionals reviewing the videos.
So far, they have not found any misconduct or accidental actions that could have caused the fractures.
These are the steps Henrico Doctors’ Hospital has taken to enhance safety in the NICU:
- Requiring all NICU caregivers to participate in supplemental unit-wide, in-person safety training programs.
- Adopting the practice of conducting additional head-to-toe examinations of each NICU baby, led by neonatologist.
- Instituting mandatory training for all healthcare providers who interact with minors, educating the providers on the identification and reporting of suspected neglect or abuse.
- Installing two new security systems to ensure proper care and parents’ peace of mind:
- A camera system that records all activity in our NICU rooms 24/7 and is available for viewing in real-time or at a later date.
- Live-streaming technology allowing parents to view their babies.
- An observer system where each provider in the. NICU is accompanied by another clinician when they are present in a baby’s room to help ensure all protocols are followed
“The safety of our NICU babies is our highest priority and we are actively working to pursue additional precautions to prevent any future incidents,” HCA said in its statement to the community.
Officials with the Virginia Department of Health said the agency is investigating a “serious situation in the neonatal intensive care unit” at the Henrico Doctors’ Hospital.
“The health and safety of those receiving care in this NICU has and will continue to be our top priority,” VDH Communications Director Maria Reppas said. “VDH’s Office of Licensure and Certification, in partnership with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), has taken immediate action to identify potential concerns and are monitoring specific corrective actions. We are working closely with other state and local partners, including the Henrico Police Department and Virginia State Police.”
Will McCue, a Henrico Polic spokesperson, said Thursday that the department was made aware of the hospital’s internal investigation and was “prepared to utilize all available resources to ensure a thorough investigation.”
Special Victims Unit detectives have been assigned to investigate if any criminal violations took place, McCue said.
“Henrico Police are partnering with Child Protective Services within Henrico’s Department of Social Services, Virginia State Police, the Virginia Health Department, and the Attorney General’s Office to ensure all evidence is examined meticulously,” McCue wrote. “We are committed to protecting our residents, particularly our youngest and most vulnerable.”
McCue noted that because of the probe’s “sensitive medical nature,” more details would be limited until the investigation is finished.
CBS 6 has also followed up with HCA to see if there is anything additional they would like to share and were awaiting a response as of Thursday afternoon.
This is a developing story. Email the CBS 6 Newsroom if you have additional information to share.
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