Nurses in Lackawanna County help NICU babies score their first ‘goal’

SCRANTON, Pa. — The staff inside Moses Taylor Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Scranton are considered experts when it comes to caring for some of our area’s most vulnerable patients.

Along with that care comes a unique touch that also eases the minds of families waiting to take their newborns home.

“When I first started in the NICU, I thought it was going to be all about babies, and it’s actually a lot bigger than that. It’s about grandparents, the parents themselves, and I really enjoy helping them have a special time here, even though it is a difficult time,” said R.N. Caroline Grady.

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She is one of the several registered nurses who add a bit of creativity to patients’ rooms.

With the World Cup taking the U.S. by storm, they wanted to share the event with their own little superstars.

“Some of the nurses are super crafty, and they use their Cricut. They bring from home, actually their Cricut, and get different materials to use for special onesies and different pictures and things like that,” said Grady.

Brantley just crossed the 5-pound mark, a goal that his mother, Destiny, says is getting him one step closer to coming home.

“It means a lot to me that they really, it’s not just a job to them,” said Destiny. “They’re really invested into these babies and giving them the care that their parents can’t give them when they’re not here.”

Whether it’s time for the World Cup competition or beginning to look a lot like Christmas, the staff at Moses Taylor looks to celebrate these preemies year-round.

“A lot of the parents, it really lifts their spirits, and it just makes them feel more like cared for,” said Grady.

“Being his dad’s birthday today, they went the extra step to still make him feel special too, and that he can’t be home with them, and when he comes today, he’ll be able to have the little surprises that they made in their keepsakes, so we’ll be able to hold on to forever,” said Destiny.

Memories that Brantley and his family will be able to look back on when he’s a little older and, hopefully, a soccer fan.