By Cydney Cappello

Mon, Oct 13, 2008 (1:15 p.m.)

St. Rose Dominican Hospitals announced today it got a $4.3 million boost from the Lincy Foundation to contribute to its new neonatal intensive care unit at the hospital's Siena campus.

“With the Level III designation, St. Rose now has the ability to treat critically ill newborns who are premature or who suffer from respiratory distress, cardiac disease, congenital anomalies, multi-system organ failure and other problems -- while they stay close to their mother,” St. Rose president Rod A. Davis said in a statement.

The Lincy Foundation donation will help pay for the design and construction of the unit, as well as new technology, including a central monitoring system and 11 fetal monitors for the Maternal Child Center.

“The effect of a world-class Level III NICU in southern Nevada cannot be overstated,” said Dr. Ravi Krishnan, director of neonatal services and chief of pediatrics. “In addition to meeting one of our area’s most pressing medical needs, the NICU not only elevates our standard of care but truly impacts the quality of life for the tiniest patients.”

Last year, the Lincy Foundation gave St. Rose $2 million to start an open-heart surgery program.