Neonatal (newborn) Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
Family Stories
The tiniest of tiny babies
The youngest child ever born at Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center surprised everyone with his will to live and developmental powers.
Trey Keifer, the newborn son of Jessica Keifer of North Platte, was born prematurely – only an estimated 24 weeks after conception on April 4. The normal term for pregnancy is roughly 40 weeks.
His name is Trey and he’s nothing short of a miracle,” Jessica said. “He’s a fighter and has a strong life force in him. He’s going to make it.”
Trey weighed only 13.9 ounces---about the weight of a can of soda---at birth and was barely 10 inches long. His eyes were still closed when he was born. With a due date in August of this year, the baby was nearly four months premature.
Baby Trey was not expected to live. But he celebrated his first month of life May 3, and doctors say there is every indication the boy has a great chance of making it.
Both Jessica and Trey were in trouble for a time. Her pregnancy was in crisis and the baby was also threatened on April 4 when doctors at Saint Elizabeth rolled her into surgery.
Flight for Life
Jessica, age 20, suffered from toxemia and high blood pressure and knew she was in trouble when she woke up in North Platte April 1, at 1:30am. She was bleeding.
Jessica’s mom, Lori Keifer, took her to Great Plains Regional Medical Center, where she was air lifted to Saint Elizabeth as her condition worsened.
Doctors also discovered fluid around Jessica’s lungs and heart, they knew they had to operate.
“Trey was only five months along,” Lori said. “They were going to have to take the baby to save Jessica’s life.”
Jessica underwent a cesarean section and feared the worst. Lori, her mom, was by her side. What happened next was nothing short of a miracle, according to Lori.
When the doctors removed Trey, he let out an almost inaudible squeak.
“It was the tiniest little cry,” Lori said. “But everyone heard it. Everyone in the operating room froze in their tracks and it got completely silent.”
5% chance of survival
Trey was 18 weeks early and barely alive. The doctors gave him only a 5-percent chance of survival when he was born. After about a week, Trey’s chances increased to 50 percent.
The doctors saved not only Jessica’s life, but her newborn son’s as well.
“We were surprised at how well he’s done,” said Dr. Larry Bausch, a neonatologist for 30 years. “This is an unusual baby.”
Trey continues to gain weight. By April 30, he had grown to 1 pound, 1.3 ounces. The doctors continue to increase the amount of nourishment he gets in his feeding tube.
Jessica intends to spend every minute she can with him, praying and planning for the day he can go home.
-------------------ONE YEAR LATER:----------------------------
Born April 5, 2005
Tiniest baby turns 1!
The tiniest baby to ever survive at Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center is now one year old and doing extremely well! Tiny Baby Trey was born weighing a mere 13 ounces---one sip more than a can of soda. And for his birthday his family threw a party---for the nurses at Saint Elizabeth who cared for him through his ups and downs during four long months! The newborn intensive care unit [NICU] nurses were delighted to see Trey---and for the surprise treats the family brought with them all the way from their home in North Platte.
Jessica Keifer, Baby Trey’s mommy, said they wanted to thank the NICU team at Saint Elizabeth for what they considering saving Baby Trey’s life and helping him to thrive. He now weighs 14 pounds and is 26” long. He’s had additional eye surgery but is a “talkative” and energetic one-year old!
Jessica said she got to know the nurses so well during Trey’s four months here that it was like seeing family again! The nurses echoed that comment.
Baby Trey was born at 23-24 weeks gestation, nearly four months early. Infants born that early typically are not developed well enough to survive. Ideally babies are born at 40 weeks gestation. Compare that with babies in our NICU born at 28-31 weeks who have a survival rate of 97%.