Submitted by Piedmont Newton

COVINGTON, Ga.  – It will be an especially meaningful Mother’s Day this year for mother-of-five Alisha Raines of Monticello, Ga. She and her husband, Joseph Caldwell, were recently able to bring their youngest son, Hudson, home after 66 days in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Piedmont Newton Hospital.

“Words can’t describe it [bringing Hudson home],” Raines recalled. “Going back and forth to the NICU was a lot. At the beginning, we really weren’t sure what we were facing with him being born so early. We didn’t know if he was going to make it.”

Hudson was born weighing just 3 lbs. at the end of December, when Alisha experienced placental abruption. With this complication, the placenta separates from the uterine wall, and the baby does not receive adequate oxygen or nutrition. Caldwell immediately recognized the seriousness of Raines’ situation when she began to bleed heavily at home, and they rushed to the closest hospital, Piedmont Newton. Doctors told the couple that Alisha’s outcome and Hudson’s could have been very different had they gotten to the hospital any later.

“It was one of those moments when you’re faced with the possibility of mortality,” Raines said. “I got to Newton, and within 20 minutes, I was in the OR [for a caesarean section].”

Hudson was born at 28 weeks gestation, which meant he needed level 3 neonatal intensive care. Level 3 NICUs can provide advanced life support, a full range of respiratory support and advanced imaging services. Fortunately, Piedmont Newton had just been certified as a level 3 NICU when Raines delivered Hudson.

“Had Hudson been born when this was still a level 2 facility, we likely would have had to transfer him to our sister facility in Rockdale County, which has level 3 capabilities,” explained Lisa Rowe, clinical manager of the NICU at Piedmont Newton. “Now, with the equipment and staff of a level 3 NICU, we can keep families like the Raines-Caldwell family close to home for the care their babies need.”

Raines said she typically visited Hudson in the NICU every day or every other day while her older children were in school. A transfer to Piedmont Rockdale would have made the logistics of doing that more difficult. Raines said, “That’s double the mileage from where we live, so I can’t even imagine.”

Raines and Caldwell were able to take Hudson home on Feb. 26, and he is thriving.