A Day in the Life of the Cradle Nursery
Babies are rocked and fed, bathed and snuggled. Doctors and therapists evaluate and treat infants with all levels of special needs. Birthparents visit, weighing the most difficult decision of their lives.
	With the ability to care for up to twenty infants and an average census of seven, The Cradle Nursery is a busy place on most days. But on the day these photos were taken, there were a record-breaking 16 infants being cared for in the Nursery. Here is what goes on in The Cradle Nursery, with the support of our donors.

Victoria Brooks, director of the Nursery, oversees the activity while simultaneously lending a warm lap to one of the babies.

	About half of the infants admitted to The Cradle Nursery have some form of special need requiring additional evaluation and care. Occupational therapist Kaye Anderson works here with Baby Tommy, who was born prematurely. Kaye’s efforts are rewarded with one of Tommy’s best grins!

A team of skilled nurses and volunteer "Cuddlers" is needed to care for sixteen babies. The Cradle nurses are experts in caring for and evaluating newborns, and our volunteer Cuddlers make sure every baby gets lots of holding, so essential to infant development. The current population explosion in the Nursery has meant that many additional staff are needed, with associated costs rising. However, there is no substitute for the quality of care provided by The Cradle nurses.

With the Nursery so full, Cradle staff from other departments often pitch in to help with feeding and cuddling. Tasha Pierce (who works with the Adoption Learning Partners program) feeds one baby and entertains another in his bouncy seat. This is a full circle moment for Tasha she is herself a “Cradle baby” who spent her first four weeks of life in The Cradle Nursery and was even named by a Cradle nurse.

The Cradle’s Facilities Manager George Mitchell proudly looks on at two of the babies he’s “delivered” from area hospitals to the Nursery.  Most babies come to the Nursery because their birthmoms have been working with The Cradle during their pregnancy, but there are also  “last minute” referrals from hospitals throughout Illinois. About one-third of the women will decide to parent, while two-thirds will choose an adoptive family from The Cradle's waiting lists.

Every baby admitted to the Nursery is seen by Cradle attending physicians Richard Burnstine and Ira Salafsky, who together have been caring for Cradle babies since 1962. Babies considered at risk for developmental or other delays are also evaluated by Dr. Madeleine Shalowitz, a developmental pediatrician.

Meticulous records are kept on every baby, documenting their medical appointments, feedings, sleeping habits and any other relevant information so that when a baby goes home it is with a full history of their stay in The Cradle Nursery.

The Cradle Nursery is a one of a kind resource for infants, pregnant women, hospitals and families. With sixteen infants in the Nursery, we need you! Maybe you can’t help cuddle, but you can help provide for the infants’ basic needs: $30 buys one day’s worth of diapers in the Nursery $75 buys three months' worth of pacifiers

$250  covers all costs of caring for one infant for 24 hours $600 pays for a special needs evaluation for two infants $1,000 covers additional staffing costs for one weekend, allowing us to continue to accept any baby referred to our care $1,500 makes you a Nursery Angel, covering all costs of operating the Nursery for one day. Choose a special occasion, and we will place a sign in The Cradle foyer honoring your special day.  To help support the nursery click here.