This project started back in 2010, and saw its completion in 2013. It was part of an effort to build, within the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the Mangiagalli Clinic, a specialized area for the hospitalization of newborns in need of surgical operations. This would grant more efficient care and safer post-operative recovery periods.

The Mangiagalli Clinic of the Ca Granda Foundation has long been an excellent structure in terms of newborn health care. Infants treated in this specialized Clinic sometimes weigh even less than 1.5 kg, making any kind of treatment very complex. The Clinic's history of success in dealing with these very delicate cases is in part due to the great harmony existing among wards, in terms of assistance, organization and cultural integration. It has become a reference point both in Italy and abroad, especially after the partnership signed with the Red Cross Chlidren's Hospital. 

THE PROJECT

It is to maintain this level of world-leading excellence that The Mangiagalli Clinic’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit has chosen to follow a model of care which is already in use in many other internationally known facilities. This model is based on the existence of a specific area, solely dedicated to the care of newborns in need of specific or surgical care. It is fundamental, in these cases, to limit the contact with other newborns as much as possible, given that these infants are particularly vulnerable to any external factor. Even a simple operation such as a transfer to the operating room can be extremely detrimental to their condition. 

In order for this area to be fully functional, the most recent, technologically advanced equipment for the monitoring of vital functions is needed. Some of the most essential measurements include heart rate frequency and the quantity of carbon dioxide and oxygen in the blood. Pieces of equipment designed to assist newborns, such as the neonatal ventilator, are also important. Above all, however, the key element in this environment are hi-tech thermo-cradles: these sophisticated pieces of machinery are equipped so as to allow surgical interventions to be carried out within them. Such a function is essential in those cases where even the smallest movement can break the fragile balance of a sick newborn.

We were delighted to take part in the effort to raise awareness about this project, until we were able to raise enough funds to donate the first of these cradles. The Ca' Granda Foundation was then able to obtain enough funds to purchase all the other needed cradles. The specific area was completed in 2013.

THE MAIN PROMOTERS WERE: 

Director Emeritus della McKinsey, presidente di CIELI AZZURRI ONLUS

Fabio Mosca

Direttore Terapia Intensiva Neonatale della Fondazione IRCCS CA' GRANDA Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico - Clinica Mangiagalli

Maurizio Torricelli

Primario Emerito della Chirurgia Pediatrica della Fondazione IRCCS CA' GRANDA Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico - Clinica Mangiagalli

Ernesto Leva

Direttore U.O.C. di Chirurgia Pediatrica della Fondazione IRCCS CA' GRANDA Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico - Clinica Mangiagalli

One of the five main Italian banks contributed to this project.