The Weber family at a Wellington Regional NICU reunion event.
She came into the world weighing just 1 pound, 12 ounces. But with love and specialized care from her family and the Level III NICU team at Wellington Regional, Finleigh Weber is thriving at age one.
“Going back was emotional,” says her mom, Natalie Weber, who brought cupcakes to the NICU staff to celebrate Finleigh’s first birthday. “It was scary, we didn’t know if she was going to make it,” she recalls of having an emergency C-section when she was just under 24 weeks pregnant. “She was a miracle,” she says of Finleigh.
NICU Director Kimberley Masterson, RN, MSN, notes that Finleigh needed life-saving care and was unable to breathe on her own in those earliest days. “Because our NICU is a Level III, which is the highest level possible in Florida, we were able to provide her with the respiratory support and comprehensive care that was required to nurture Finleigh until she was strong enough to go home,” she says. The NICU nurses and staff members not only provide critical care for their tiny patients, but also help parents and families through this stressful time. “We want families to feel comfortable, and we often form strong bonds with both the babies and families,” Masterson notes.
Having the support of the NICU team made a big difference, says Weber. “They were like friends there to help you.” She recalls that she wanted to be at the hospital as much as possible, while also taking care of her family at home with her husband during the three months that Finleigh was in the NICU. Nurses updated her each day she arrived at the hospital and they helped with feeding and caring for Finleigh as she was getting stronger. “They were very hands on,” Weber says.
She notes that Finleigh now wants to get into everything and be a part of everything. “Every couple of weeks, she’s doing something new,” she says.
She says she thinks about the NICU team when she drives by the hospital and wanted them to be a part of her daughter’s first birthday. “We would absolutely recommend Wellington Regional,” she says. “We feel so blessed.”