At Riley Children’s Health, we understand that having a newborn baby with urgent medical needs can be an overwhelming experience. That’s why we strive to provide the best care for you and your family.
What is Neonatology?
Neonatology is a specialized medical field that focuses on the care and treatment of newborn babies, particularly those who are born prematurely or have other birth defects that require immediate medical attention after birth.
Neonatologists or neonatal doctors are health professionals that undergo additional training after medical school to become experts in the care of high-risk newborns. At Riley Children’s, our neonatology program is nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top programs in the nation. Meaning, our neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) are among the best in the U.S.
Riley Children’s offers the highest level of neonatology care
Riley Children’s offers the most advanced neonatology services in Indiana. With a Level IV NICU at Riley Hospital for Children in downtown Indianapolis, offering the highest level of care, neonatal specialists care for the most complex neonates needing the most specialized treatment options.
Riley Hospital for Children also offers a Level III NICU in our Riley Maternity Tower. This NICU offers a dedicated delivery team that provides resuscitation and stabilization for high and standard risk deliveries. The multidisciplinary team is equipped to care for the tiniest and most critically ill babies while offering a large range of neonatal services and support.
Across our NICUs at Riley Hospital for Children and our NICU at IU Health North Hospital, we deliver expert neonatology care near families, close to home.
Indiana's Only Nationally Ranked Program
The Riley Children's Health neonatology program is nationally ranked in the top 25 by U.S. News & World Report. We provide care to the most critical babies in Indiana at our Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)—the highest designation level for NICUs—at our main campus in downtown Indianapolis.
Specialized programs to care for the smallest and sickest babies
Specialized programs to care for the smallest and sickest babies
At Riley Children’s, we work closely with medical and surgical specialists to deliver and coordinate care for your baby. Below are a few highly sub-specialized programs we offer:
NeuroNICU
A partnership between neonatology and neurology provides the highest level of care for infants with neurological conditions.
Lung and Airway
A team of specialists provides innovative preeminent care to prevent and treat lung and airway problems in preterm and term newborns.
Heart Center NICU
Dedicated program to support babies with complex heart conditions.
Perinatal Genomics
Provides patients and families access to genetic services to diagnose genetic disorders that require the need for NICU care.
High-Risk Infant Follow-Up Care
Specialized feeding and neurodevelopmental care for your baby after going home from NICU. We continue to monitor your baby’s progress to ensure they are healthy by following their individualized growth and developmental goals.
Neonatal Kidney Health
Features the combined experience and expertise of neonatologists and nephrologists to provide cutting-edge, evidence-based care for your baby’s kidney health.
NICU Mental Health
Psychologists provide emotional support, psychotherapy, infant mental health intervention, screening, and education for families whose infants are hospitalized in the Simon Family Tower NICU.
Fetal Center
Multidisciplinary program that coordinates care for high-risk pregnancies with complex fetal diagnoses.
Family-centered care
While your baby receives the most advanced treatment, our comprehensive care team provides you and your family every available resource so you can focus on your child. Our family-centered care includes:
- Private rooms for all families within our NICUs
- NICView™ camera system so families can securely see their baby on any device anytime
- Child Life, family support specialists, lactation consultants and psychologists
- Parent engagement in care and daily rounds
- NICU Nest, a parent-support resource created for NICU families by NICU families
Committed to excellence
Our neonatologists are focused on improving care and developing lifesaving treatments. Riley Children’s was the first in Indiana to evaluate the use of surfactant therapy, which is now used at hospitals across the nation to treat breathing problems in premature babies.
We also tested and assisted in federal approval for a technology called high frequency jet ventilation. This technology helps babies breathe without stressing their lungs. In addition to introducing new medical services to our own patients, we also share our findings with other NICUs across the country.
Conditions & Services
Conditions Treated
Our pediatric specialists provide patient- and family-centered care for most related conditions. The links below provide more specific information about some, but not all, of the conditions that we treat.
Services Offered
We offer a number of different Neonatology (NICU) services. Below are some, but not all, of the services that we provide. If you have a question about a specific service that is not listed here, please contact our department.
Doctors and
Locations
Doctors
Our dedicated team of neonatologists works around the clock to provide highly specialized care to newborn patients at Riley at IU Health. Our department coordinates with specialists from other departments to ensure every newborn receives the expert care he or she needs.
4.5 out of 5 stars
(37 ratings)
Score is an average of all responses to care provider related questions on our nationally-recognized NRC Health Patient Experience Survey.
Learn About SurveyNeonatal - Perinatal Medicine
317.948.0062
Locations
Locations
In addition to our primary hospital location at the Academic Health Center in Indianapolis, IN, we have convenient locations to better serve our communities throughout the state.
Riley Maternity Tower
702 Barnhill Dr
Indianapolis, IN 46202
Fetal Center at Riley Children's Health
575 Riley Hospital Dr
Indianapolis, IN 46202
Related Programs
Related Programs
We provide multispecialty Neonatology programs for a number of conditions. Below are links to our related Neonatology programs.
Related Stories
Related Stories
Super babies fly out of the Riley NICU
Three Indianapolis brothers each spent a long time in the neonatal intensive care unit after they were born well before their due dates, but all are doing well today.
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A “superstar” in the NICU
Clinical nurse specialist Laura Blazier has always wanted to care for sick babies.
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Health Professionals
For Health Professionals
The Neonatology Department at Riley at IU Health works with NICUs across the state of Indiana to raise the standard of care provided to newborn patients in need of advanced care. We work with researchers to continually improve outcomes and explore new treatment options.
Transfer a Patient
To request a patient transfer to Riley at IU Health, call the IU Health Transfer Center: 317.963.3330
Refer A Patient
Riley at IU Health works with referring physicians in Indiana and beyond.
Education
Riley at IU Health works in conjunction with the Indiana University School of Medicine to provide fellowship-level training through the Section of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine. This fellowship provides exceptional opportunities to develop clinical knowledge and experience.