Texas Children's in Austin is investing $39 million to double its neonatal intensive care capacity, adding 17 rooms to meet growing demand for specialized newborn care.
For families facing a high-risk pregnancy or a critically ill newborn, having advanced care close to home can make all the difference.
Texas Children's in Austin announced plans to expand its neonatal intensive care unit from 14 rooms to 31, using existing space on the hospital's fifth floor. Construction is expected to begin this fall and be completed in fall 2027.
The expansion will allow the hospital to care for up to 300 additional critically ill newborns each year, serving families throughout Central Texas and beyond, including West Texas.
The announcement comes shortly after Texas Children's received a Level IV NICU designation, the highest level of neonatal care in Texas. The designation means the hospital can treat newborns with the most complex medical and surgical conditions.
"This NICU expansion and our highest available designation as a Level IV ensure that babies with the most complex medical and surgical needs can receive highly specialized care close to home," said Dr. Jeffery Shilt, president of Texas Children's in Austin.
Texas Children's referenced the Price Family from San Marcos, who experienced a high-risk birth.
Their daughter, Noel, was diagnosed before birth with complex gastroschisis and ultimately spent 81 days in the NICU. She underwent fetal surgery before birth and two additional procedures shortly after she was born.
The need for that care can also mean long hospital stays. Texas Children's said the average Austin NICU patient remains hospitalized for 22 days, more than three times the average inpatient stay.
The hospital expects the additional beds to help accommodate more of those complex cases as Central Texas continues to grow.
The expansion is also part of a broader push by Texas Children's to expand maternal and newborn services in the region. The hospital recently received a Level II Maternal Care designation and has expanded obstetrics and gynecology services into the Lakeway area.
