02 Sep NICU Awareness Month
By Dr. Chuck Engstrom
There are certain times each year that we focus our attention on special groups of people that live and work among us. One of these times is the month of September which is designated as NICU Awareness Month. NICU Awareness Month is a time when we at Madelyn’s Fund seek to honor the many professionals working in our local NICU’s as well as both honor and consider the needs of the families and babies being cared for in these NICU’s both today and in the future. As a retired neonatologist of over 30 years, I have had the privilege of working alongside many great medical professionals who have dedicated their lives to caring for the most vulnerable among us, our babies. While these babies appear very vulnerable, they are also some of the most resilient and courageous humans I have ever met. I have also had the honor of working with many wonderful, caring parents.
The suffering that the parents experience while having their infant in the NICU goes beyond words and of course some of these infants sadly are not able to go home with their parents. Sometimes these families have needs that prevent them from visiting their infants in the hospital. As difficult as these needs are, imagine the trauma of experiencing the death of an infant, but not having the ability to pay for a funeral. I have been at the bedside with many families in these exact circumstances. It is at this point of real human suffering that Madelyn’s Fund comes alongside to offer a compassionate helping hand.
Madelyn’s Fund shows real mercy to real families in our community every day. From assistance with tangible needs such as assistance with utility bills or the provision of gas cards to the funding of funerals when the unthinkable occurs Madelyn’s Fund seeks to make a difference in these family’s lives. Please consider supporting the work of Madelyn’s Fund through visiting one of these events and through your generous donations. Please visit our website to see a complete list of the NICU Awareness events during the month of September as well as learn all the different ways Madelyn’s Fund impacts the lives of NICU families throughout the year.
Dr. Chuck Engstrom
Neonatologist, Emeritus Professor of Pediatrics at Levine Children’s Hospital, and Madelyn’s Fund Board Member.
Dr. Engstrom, a dedicated neonatologist, earned his MD from Wake Forest School of Medicine in 1983. He completed his Pediatrics residency at North Carolina Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem in 1986, followed by a fellowship in Neonatology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1989. Dr. Engstrom served on the faculty at the Medical University of South Carolina before moving to Charlotte, where he spent 30 years working in the NICU at Atrium Health’s Levine Children’s Hospital. Since his retirement in April 2022, he continues to share his expertise as an Emeritus Professor of Pediatrics at Levine Children’s Hospital. In addition to his medical contributions, Dr. Engstrom serves on the Board of Directors for Madelyn’s Fund and as an Elder on the Session of Threshold Church (EPC) in Weddington, NC.
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