The Incubator

The Incubator

<p>A weekly discussion about new evidence in neonatal care and the fascinating individuals who make this progress possible. Hosted by Dr. Ben Courchia and Dr. Daphna Yasova Barbeau.</p>

#305 - 🔬 Satyan Lakshminrusimha on Science, Mentorship, and Building a Better NICU

Send us a text In this episode of the Incubator, David McCulley and Misty Good talk with Dr. Satyan Lakshminrusimha, a leading figure in neonatology and physician-scientist who discusses his journey from clinician to researcher, the significance of large animal studies in neonatal care, and the impact of research on clinical guidelines. They explore the importance of mentorship, the challenges of conducting neonatology physician-scientist research, and the leadership roles in the field of neo...

04-30
58:25

#304 – 🗞️ NeoNews - What is new in neonatal and perinatal care

Send us a text In this week’s episode of NeoNews, the team takes a deep dive into global fertility trends and the complex forces shaping the future of parenthood. The conversation starts with a discussion on worldwide declines in fertility rates, highlighting the economic pressures and societal shifts that are making the decision to have children more difficult across the globe. The hosts reflect on how financial instability, the high cost of living, and long-term uncertainty are reshaping fa...

04-27
01:10:25

#303 - Improving resident debriefing following critical events in the NICU

Send us a text In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr Kelsey Kirkman who is now a third year Neonatology fellow at Texas Children’s Hospital. Kelsey shared with us her primary fellow project on creating a debrief tool for residents following critical events in the NICU. She describes in depth about how she came up with this idea and how she found her mentor to help support and navigate her medical education interest. We talked about medical education theories and how to...

04-25
31:45

#302 - 👶 Tracheostomy in the NICU | Shakeema’s Journey as a “Trach Mama”

Send us a text Leah and Shakeema Smiley discuss the challenges and triumphs of navigating life with a child in the NICU, particularly focusing on the experience of having a tracheostomy. Shakeema shares her personal journey with her daughter Lori, who was born prematurely and required extensive medical care. The conversation highlights the emotional and practical aspects of caring for a child with special needs, the importance of advocacy, and the power of hope and community support. As alway...

04-23
49:47

#301 - 📑 Journal Club - The Complete Episode from April 20th 2025

Send us a text In this Journal Club episode, Ben and Daphna review several impactful studies shaping neonatal care. They begin with a secondary analysis of the ETTNO trial, which examined whether liberal transfusion thresholds reduce intermittent hypoxemia or improve neurodevelopmental outcomes in extremely low birth weight infants. Despite prior concerns, the study found no benefit to liberal thresholds, supporting current restrictive practices. A JAMA Network Open study follows, revealing t...

04-20
01:33:39

#300 - 🌍 Neonatal Care in Trinidad & Tobago: Challenges & Triumphs (ft. Dr. Marlon Timothy)

Send us a text In this episode, Dr. Marlon Timothy shares his journey as a neonatologist, discussing his experiences in Trinidad and Tobago and the evolution of neonatal care. He highlights the challenges faced upon returning from training in Toronto, the establishment of neonatal units, and the implementation of therapeutic hypothermia. Dr. Timothy emphasizes the importance of training and collaboration in improving neonatal outcomes and shares insights into the ongoing efforts to enhance ma...

04-16
01:08:24

#299 - The Hidden Language of NICU Billing with Dr. Scott Duncan

Send us a text In this episode of The Incubator, Ben and Daphna speak with Dr. Scott Duncan, Division Chief at the University of Louisville, about the critical importance of medical billing and coding in neonatology. The discussion explores how accurate documentation and thoughtful use of codes can impact everything from individual reimbursement to hospital funding and staffing. Dr. Duncan explains the key differences between critical care and intensive care coding, highlighting how misunders...

04-13
34:36

#298 - 🚀 New solution for non-invasive blood pressure monitoring in the NICU

Send us a text In this Tech Tuesday episode, Ben and Daphna welcome Xina Quan, co-founder and CEO of PyrAmes, to introduce a groundbreaking neonatal device: the Boppli. Developed from Stanford research, the Boppli is a non-invasive, wearable blood pressure monitor that provides continuous, real-time readings—without the need for cuffs or arterial catheters. FDA-cleared for babies under five kilograms, the Boppli uses a soft, adhesive-free band that wraps gently around an extremity. Backed by ...

04-09
14:33

#297 - 📑 Journal Club - The Complete Episode from April 6th 2025

Send us a text In this week’s Journal Club, Ben and Daphna dissect six critical studies reshaping our understanding of neonatal care. Kicking off with the Canadian Neonatal Network’s multicenter cohort on inhaled nitric oxide (iNO), they explore how early pulmonary hypertension responsiveness to iNO may predict survival in preterm infants. They then examine a poignant study on maternal decision regret following extremely preterm births, revealing elevated regret across all pathways—comfort, a...

04-06
01:16:57

#296 - Understanding Delirium in the NICU

Send us a text Delirium in the NICU is an under-recognized and under-assessed challenge. In this episode of The Incubator Podcast, Ben and Daphna sit down with Dr. Karishma Rao and clinical pharmacist Alex Oschman from Children’s Mercy Hospital to explore the complexities of neonatal delirium. Drawing on their collaborative work and recent publication in Frontiers in Pharmacology, they unpack the nuances of distinguishing delirium from pain, agitation, withdrawal, and sedation—particularly in...

04-02
51:56

#295 – 🗞️ NeoNews: Vaccine Schedule, Birthright, Trust in our Doctors, and more…

Send us a text In this packed episode of Neo News, Eli, Ben, and Daphna dive into the headlines impacting neonatology and public health. The trio starts with the controversial confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as head of HHS, analyzing his actions around the CDC, NIH, vaccine policy, and the implications of promoting “informed consent” messaging in place of public health advocacy. Drawing from reporting by The New York Times, STAT News, and Science Magazine, the team unpacks how these shi...

03-30
01:12:20

#294 – Dynamics of human milk expression after very preterm birth in the NICU: Dr Ilana Levene

Send us a text In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Dr Ilana Levene, who is now a Neonatology subspeciality trainee at Oxford, England. Ilana has done some fantastic work on exploring the important topic of human milk expression. She described her randomized control trial in using relaxing techniques to facilitate human milk expression in the NICU. She shared the challenges that she had in conducting her RCT. We also talked about RCTs with negative results and how negative res...

03-28
31:48

#293 - 👶 Skin to skin: How parents can buffer pain, improve sleep, and decrease stress of their NICU babies

Send us a text In this episode of Beyond the Beeps, Leah discusses the importance of understanding a baby's senses in the NICU with occupational therapists Emily Hills and Lindsay Hardy. They explore the concept of co-occupation and co-regulation, emphasizing the vital role parents play in their baby's development. The conversation delves into the eight senses, the impact of early birth on sensory development, and practical tips for parents to enhance their baby's NICU experience. The episode...

03-26
56:32

#292 - Neonatology Staffing Practices (ft WiN Group)

Send us a text In this week’s episode, Daphna hosts a powerful roundtable featuring Drs. Kerri Machut, Milenka Cuevas-Guaman, Emily Miller, Christine Bishop, and Christiane Dammann—leaders of a national effort to improve neonatology staffing. Together, they share insights from their recently developed recommendations, created through a Delphi consensus process and supported by a strategic grant from the AAP Section on Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine. These evidence-informed guidelines aim to prom...

03-23
56:15

#291 -🔬Understanding Fetal Growth (ft. Dr. Paul Rozance)

Send us a text In this episode of the Incubator, Dr. Paul Rozance discusses his research on fetal metabolism and growth regulation, emphasizing the role of insulin, glucagon, and placental function in development. He shares insights on how metabolic signals influence fetal growth and how complications like placental insufficiency impact long-term health. The conversation also highlights the challenges of translating research from animal models to clinical applications and the importance of co...

03-19
01:12:57

#290 – 🫀 From the Heart - Preemies with CHD, Post op Brain Injury & The Neonatologist’s Role in Cardiac Care

Send us a text In this episode of From The Heart, hosts Dr. Nim Goldshtrom and Dr. Adrianne Bischoff explore the latest research in neonatal cardiac care, focusing on congenital heart disease (CHD) and its impact on premature infants. They discuss a study analyzing survival trends in preterm infants with CHD, highlighting the “double jeopardy” these babies face due to both prematurity and congenital cardiac anomalies. Another study compares neurodevelopmental outcomes between preterm infants ...

03-16
45:59

#289 - 🌍 Reducing Neonatal Mortality in India (ft. Dr. Rajesh Mehta)

Send us a text In this episode, Dr. Rajesh Mehta shares his extensive journey in pediatrics, detailing the evolution of newborn care in India, the challenges faced in providing quality healthcare, and the importance of continuous improvement in neonatal care practices. The conversation highlights the significant strides made in reducing neonatal mortality rates while addressing the ongoing challenges in healthcare infrastructure and quality of care. In this conversation, Dr. Mehta also ...

03-13
01:14:26

#288 - The Future of Family-Centered Neonatal Care

Send us a text In this special episode of The Incubator Podcast, Ben and Daphna welcome Dr. Malathi Balasundaram and Morgan Kowalski, key members of the Family-Centered Care (FCC) Task Force, to discuss the growing movement towards integrating families as active partners in neonatal care. Dr. Balasundaram, a neonatologist and chair of the FCC Task Force, explains that family-centered care goes beyond simple parental involvement—it requires caregivers to be equal members of the NICU team, enga...

03-09
34:43

#287 - 🚀 End-Tidal Carbon Monoxide Monitoring for the Management of Neonatal Jaundice

Send us a text In this special Tech Tuesday episode of The Incubator Podcast, Ben and Daphna sit down with Anthony Wu, CEO of Capnia, Inc., to explore how end-tidal carbon monoxide (ETCO) monitoring is impacting neonatal jaundice management. Anthony explains how this technology, based on decades of research, provides a real-time, non-invasive biomarker for hemolysis and thus indirectly, bilirubin production, allowing clinicians to better assess and predict neonatal jaundice severity. Unlike t...

03-05
25:22

#286 - 📑 Journal Club - The Complete Episode from march 2nd 2025

Send us a text In this episode of The Incubator’s Journal Club, hosts Ben and Daphna open with exciting announcements, including details on the upcoming Delphi Neonatal Innovation Conference and new video content for their “Beyond the Beeps” series on YouTube. They also share updates on the Board Review Podcast, geared toward both board preparation and ongoing learning in neonatology. The team’s first paper discussion highlights the ECLA trial from The Lancet, which examines higher versus low...

03-02
01:28:43

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