Two Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) caregivers from Covenant Children’s traveled Thursday to Corpus Christi to assist with the evacuation of the smallest patients ahead of Hurricane Harvey’s anticipated landfall. They are returning to Lubbock at noon Friday at Lubbock Aero, 6304 N. Cedar Ave.
“After Gov. Abbott declared a state of emergency, we were told an evacuation of hospitals was underway in the Corpus Christi area,” said Courtney McPherson, manager of Covenant Children’s NICU. “Aircraft and NICU teams across the state were needed to transport infant patients from affected Texas coast hospitals to other hospitals’ NICUs. Our Covenant Children’s transport coordinator immediately agreed to help.”
About 4 p.m. Thursday, two Covenant Children’s specialty transport caregivers, Sally Dillashaw, RNC-NICU; and Reid Fry, RN-PICU, left Lubbock and flew via EagleMed to Corpus Christi. Dr. Craig D. Rhyne, Regional Chief Medical Officer of Covenant Health, also serves as the Texas Medical Director for EagleMed, one of the oldest and most experienced air medical transport services in the Midwest.
“Once they arrived in Corpus Christi, they safely transported an infant patient via ambulance to a hospital in San Antonio. We are honored to help our fellow Texans in a time of emergency,” McPherson said.
McPherson said due to the specialized equipment and needs of the tiny NICU patients, highly trained and certified teams are required to safely transport these infants. “This means, when needing to evacuate babies, it really does take a village,” she said.
Covenant Children’s is the region’s only licensed full-service, freestanding children’s hospital – and one of only eight in Texas. Dr. Amy Thompson, CEO, Covenant Children’s, proudly said “We are committed to being a hub of hope and healing for the communities we serve, even when we are called to assist with an emergency across the state.”
(Press release from Covenant Health)
