Indoor Barbecue Organized by UK Employee Provides Break for NICU Families

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 27, 2016) — A cloudless sky and temperatures inching into the 80-degree range motivated many Lexington residents to dust off the grill for barbecuing on April 17.

And while barbecuing outdoors was an enticing thought for Jessica Lowery and Tyron Campbell, the couple was preoccupied with a much more important matter — the health of their newborn baby Elizabeth.

The couple from Richmond, Kentucky, checked in at the Kentucky Children’s Hospital (KCH) Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) early that Sunday morning and planned to camp out inside the hospital for the remainder of the day. They were taking advantage of every moment to bond with Elizabeth, who was born March 30, three months before her due date, and suffered from an underdeveloped respiratory system. They stayed with a relative in downtown Lexington and walked across town just to linger near Elizabeth’s incubator. Even when they were not at the hospital, they called to check in on Elizabeth every couple of hours.

For families whose babies are receiving extended care in the NICU, meals and housing accommodations are secondary concerns to spending time with a sick and vulnerable child. On April 17, a group of volunteers and employees from the NICU served hot barbecue, baked beans, coleslaw and cupcakes to families with a child admitted to the NICU. The option to provide a meal for NICU families was a prize chosen by UK HealthCare Obstetrics and Gynecology employee Julia Snow, who won a raffle drawing during a March of Dimes event last fall. Gigi’s Cupcakes and Roll ‘N’ Smoke owned by Justin Taylor provided the food for the event.

With her personal connection to the NICU, Snow intended to use the winning raffle ticket to help NICU families. Snow experienced the shock and distress of having a baby sent to the NICU 30 years ago after she delivered her son, who was born with minor complications related to his heart and jaundice. Snow remembers going to the nursery to admire her newborn, only to discover he’d been relocated to the NICU.

“He was going to be okay, but you don’t know that when you walk back there and your baby is covered in monitors,” Snow said.

The complications Snow’s son experienced were soon resolved, and her baby grew up to become a successful lawyer and businessman. But Snow remembers her own stress and uncertainty during the short time he was in the NICU, and delivering food to NICU families was a simple way for the NICU staff and volunteers to help ease that burden.

“I just want to soften an hour of their day,” Snow said. “We can’t do anymore than that. They are in a huge state of stress, and we just want to let them know that someone was willing to give them a meal and that they care.” 

Shelly Marino, the NICU nursing administrator, said caring for sick and vulnerable babies also means attending to the needs of their families. Those needs include bonding time with the baby and encouragement, as well as basic needs such as food and a place to rest.

“The NICU experience is a time fraught with uncertainty, inconvenience and stress for any family,” Shelly Marino, nursing operations administrator for the NICU, said. “Providing a barbecue is just one more way our staff can show these families we care about their wellbeing. We also provide support to families by encouraging Kangaroo Care, conducting daily family-centered rounds, and providing journey beads, which serve as symbols of progress during the time a baby is receiving care. We understand nurturing the family is an important component of NICU care.” 

Debbie Bruderle, who waited for a foster child being treated in the NICU, visited with Snow while enjoying a plate of barbecue. She said the meal was a nice break for families that spend several weeks waiting for children to come home from then NICU and often don’t get away for meals, showers or other duties part of their daily lives.

“I can’t imagine what these families have spent every day on food,” Bruderle said.

Lowery said she hopes to bring baby Elizabeth home to Richmond in July. With months of waiting ahead, she was grateful for the simple gesture of an indoor barbecue.

“It’s wonderful,” she said of the meal, pulling the wrapper off a cupcake.

MEDIA CONTACT: Elizabeth Adams, elizabethadams@uky.edu