Dr. Uday Devaskar rode the near-52 miles home from UCLA to Oxnard in a private ambulance with prematurely born Ione Villanueva in 2001.
When they arrived, family and friends were waiting for Ione, who was able to spend time in her crib with her twin sister, Macy, before she died from liver failure in her mother’s arms about an hour later.
Devaskar, who works at the neonatal intensive care unit at Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA, personally arranged to bring Ione home before discontinuing life support for the 1.2-pound child.
On Sunday, Ione’s mother, Judy Villanueva, was one of hundreds of people to attend the neonatal intensive care unit’s “graduate reunion” for individuals who had spent time in the unit when they were born. Villanueva attended to show her gratitude for Devaskar, whom she has maintained a close relationship with because of the bond they formed after Ione arrived home.
Villanueva said she is also grateful to the medical staff for caring so attentively to Macy, her other daughter, and treating her as their own. Macy, who is now 14 years old, was in an even more critical state than Ione when she was born, but she is now nearly fully recovered from tracheal stenosis, an extreme narrowing of one’s windpipe, which she suffered from after being incubated for five months.
At the celebration, organized every two years by UCLA nurses, families were given a chance to reconnect with the medical staff who fought for the health of premature babies during the initial moments of their lives. NICU medical staff were able to meet with individuals who recovered from medical problems at birth. Some of the former patients were a few years old and some had grown to adulthood since their time at Mattel.
Attendees enjoyed food and drinks while listening to music and watching a performance by UCLA’s marching band. Dozens of children at the event ran around, playing in bounce houses, collecting balloon animals and laughing at a puppet show and petting zoo while reconnecting with the medical staff who cared for them.
Respiratory therapist Hratch Kayichian, who also attended the event and has been working at the NICU respiratory therapy department for 20 years, said he found it rewarding to attend the reunion and see the children thrive.
“Often, there is very little hope for the babies, and all the staff can do is be supportive,” he said.
At the NICU, nurses and doctors help newborns in a 32-bed unit. The facility serves infants in the greater Los Angeles area and other nearby regions. Patients at the NICU often face complicated medical problems, which require extra care from staff. Kayichian said he thinks the medical staff at the NICU at UCLA is full of patient, understanding and delicate people.
Though it is sometimes stressful for families and staff at the NICU, Dara Dolliole, a nurse at the neonatal intensive care unit, said she thinks it is rewarding to see the children grow up, go to school and be playful in the future. Reunions like the event on Sunday remind her of the benefits of her work and allow her to see the impact on others’ lives.
“It is nice to see (the children) thrive (at this event), and it is important to continue to celebrate life,” Dolliole said.
Stephanie and Joseph Crisostomo, who both attended Sunday’s event, said they are grateful to the respiratory therapy department for caring for their daughter, Willow, who had trouble breathing when she was born three months prematurely. She weighed less than a pound at birth and was 10 1/2 inches tall.
Now, 11-month-old Willow is taking supplemental oxygen while her lungs continue to mature. At home, she is interactive, engaged and sassy, Stephanie Crisostomo said.
“We were close to the respiratory therapy department because they were giving her treatment so often and were so compassionate and skilled,” Crisostomo said.
A team of primary nurses was also key in Willow’s recovery because of the personal time the medical staff spent with her daughter when she and her husband were unable to be there, she said.
Joseph Crisostomo said he remembers one particular nurse amid others crowding Willow’s bed during an emergency resuscitation at the hospital. The nurse encouraged his daughter by saying, “Come on Willow – you can do it.” For him, this was a special moment that showed the personal care the nurses devoted to their patients.
“The event is important to remind us of what we do, to stay focused and to be rewarded for the hard work,” Kayichian said. “It is a celebration of the lives of the graduated patients, but it is very therapeutic and rewarding to the staff.”