You wouldn’t know it from looking at him now, but Daniel Guidry weighed just one pound when he was born prematurely at UTMB. Guidry, nicknamed “Tiny” at the time, spent the first weeks of his life in UTMB’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Guidry came back to the UTMB Galveston Campus recently, but now he’s over 6 feet tall and recently became a grandfather.
Former patients like Daniel and their families reunited with the doctors, nurses and volunteers who once took care of them at the annual NICU reunion event at UTMB on April 22.
The NICU Family Reunion, hosted by the Neonatal Nursery featured games, music and crafts and provided an opportunity for the children and their families to be reunited with the UTMB staff members who provided care while they were hospitalized during the early months of life.
“Premature babies face a difficult journey as they enter the world,” Dr. Sunil Jain, professor of Pediatrics in Neonatology at UTMB, said prior to the event. “I’m looking forward to seeing how our NICU graduates are doing now and recognizing all the nurses and volunteers who have supported them in the journey.”
The NICU reunion used to be an annual event but had to be canceled the last few years because of COVID-19. Around 30 patients and their families attended this year's event. Most of the families come back every year, and the doctors/nurses really enjoy seeing their patients progress and grow up.
NICU nurse Yolanda Leyva knows what it’s like to be in the NICU both as a nurse and as a family member. Her grandson Joey was born with a heart condition that also required him to spend some time in the NICU. Joey is 9 years old now, has had two open heart surgeries and is doing well.
"I've worked at UTMB for 34 years, and it’s always amazing to see the babies come back,” Leyva said. “Many of them were under one pound when they were born here—and to see how well they’re doing and how healthy they are, there is no better feeling in the world."
