Disclosure: Dr. Wanda Barfield appeared on this episode in her personal capacity. The views she expresses are her own and do not represent the official positions of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Health and Human Services, or the United States government. Hello friends 👋 The American Academy of Pediatrics has never had a neonatologist as president. This September, that could change. In this special episode, Ben sits down with Dr. Wanda Barf

Hello friends 👋 Why does reading in the NICU still feel optional when the evidence says otherwise? Daphna sits down with Paige Pedroli, author of the Nic Zoo book and two-time NICU mom, and Dr. Raquel Garcia, a craniofacial and feeding specialist, to unpack why reading to preterm and critically ill infants belongs alongside kangaroo care as neuropromotive, not just neuroprotective. They cover the evidence behind auditory stimulation and language outcomes, why reading gives o

Hello friends 👋 Is your EMR actually built for neonatology, or just retrofitted to survive it? Ben sits down with Dr. Lindsey Knake, clinical assistant professor and associate chief health information officer at the University of Iowa, to talk AI in the NICU. They cover the real difference between Epic's homegrown tools and third-party options like Evidently and NABLA, why a six-month hospital stay breaks most chart summarization tools, and how ambient AI is starting to chan

Hello friends 👋 When is surfactant "early," and when is it too early, or too late? In this second installment of our two-part series with the Neonatal Resuscitation Symposium, Ben Courchia sits down with Dr. Roger Soll, a leading voice in surfactant research since the 1980s, to trace how our thinking on timing has evolved, from aggressive prophylactic dosing to selective rescue therapy to today's less invasive approaches like LISA and SALSA. Dr. Soll unpacks why head-to-head

Hello friends 👋 How far has delivery room ventilation really come? In this special episode, recorded in collaboration with the Neonatal Resuscitation Symposium, Ben sits down with Dr. Charles Roehr, professor of neonatology and perinatal medicine at the University of Bristol, clinical trialist at the University of Oxford, and member of ILCOR. Together they trace the evolution of respiratory support at birth, from the era of fixed inflation breaths to today's focus on physiol

Hello friends 👋 Does the latest Cochrane evidence finally tip the balance in favor of erythropoiesis stimulating agents in preterm infants? In this VON Grand Rounds follow-up episode, Ben sits down with Dr. Roger Soll and Dr. Souvik Mitra to review the 2026 Cochrane systematic review on early ESA use in preterm newborns. Across 37 trials and over 6,000 infants, early ESAs consistently reduce the need for red blood cell transfusion. The review also confirms with high certaint

Hello friends 👋 What would it really mean to shorten neonatology fellowship training to two years? In this episode, Ben and co-host Dr. Shetal Shah sit down with three division heads, Dr. Jill Maron (Brown), Dr. Patrick McNamara (University of Iowa), and Dr. Sarah Taylor (Yale), to examine the ABP's proposed changes from the perspective of those who run major academic NICUs. From the operational and financial strain of losing an entire class of third-year fellows, to the ero

Hello friends 👋 What does it mean to truly improve outcomes for very low birth weight infants, and are we actually doing it? In this episode, Daphna sits down with Dr. Joseph Kaempf, neonatologist and Medical Director of Value Research and Innovation at Providence Health System in Oregon, to examine some uncomfortable truths about neonatal quality improvement. Dr. Kaempf shares findings from a study spanning 16 NICUs over 14 years showing that composite morbidity outcomes ha

Hello friends 👋 What if closing a PDA could be done at the bedside in under 10 minutes, without transporting a fragile preterm infant to the cath lab? Dr. Shyam Sathanandam, Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine at Nicklaus Children's Heart Institute, joins us to discuss the evolution of transcatheter PDA closure in extremely preterm infants. We cover how bedside procedures protect the most vulnerable neonates, which infants are most likely to benefit from closure, the learning c

Hello Friends 👋 This recording captures the AI panel discussion from the 2026 Delphi Neonatal Innovation Conference, held live on Monday afternoon. Dr. Jim Barry (University of Colorado), Dr. Thao Ho (UCSF), Lindsey Knake (University of Iowa), Selva Selvaraj (Nicklaus Children's Health System), and Dr. Ryan McAdams (University of Wisconsin-Madison) discuss where AI stands in the NICU today. The panelists cover predictive models for sepsis and NEC, AI documentation tools, and

Hello friends 👋 What if the smallest patients finally had a diaper designed just for them? For years, NICUs have struggled to find appropriately sized diapers for extremely premature infants, often resorting to makeshift solutions that compromised skin integrity and care quality. That changes now. In this breaking news episode, Ben sits down with Harry McCusker, Director of Research and Development for North America Pampers Diapers, to discuss the groundbreaking launch of t

Hello friends 👋 What happens when we challenge our long-standing assumptions about phototherapy in the NICU? In this special installment of our Rethinking Phototherapy series, Ben and Daphna are joined by Dr. Deepak Manhas to examine one of the most complex questions: how should we manage hyperbilirubinemia in preterm infants? Unlike term babies, preemies face unique risks—shorter red blood cell lifespan, immature bilirubin conjugation, lower albumin binding, and increased

Hello friends 👋 In the second installment of our Rethinking Phototherapy series, Ben and Daphna welcome Dr. Daniel Rauch, Professor of Pediatrics at the Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine and Division Chief of Pediatric Hospital Medicine and General Academic Pediatrics at Joseph Sanzari Children’s Hospital. Dr. Rauch co-authored the AAP technical report on phototherapy and brings a unique perspective on how light therapy should be understood and applied in clinical prac

Hello friends 👋 In this episode of The Incubator Podcast, Ben and Daphna sit down with Dr. Alex Kemper, Division Chief of Primary Care Pediatrics at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Editor-in-Chief of Pediatrics. Dr. Kemper served as chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics subcommittee that authored the 2022 revision of the neonatal hyperbilirubinemia guidelines. Together, they explore the motivations behind revisiting the 2004 guideline, the major changes introduced,

Hello Friends 👋 This week, The Incubator is coming to you live from Denver, Colorado, where Dr. Daphna Yasova Barbeau is attending and speaking at the 2025 CHNC Symposium. Daphna will be bringing you a wave of content straight from the conference—video interviews, podcast episodes, social posts, and live updates capturing the innovation and collaboration that define CHNC. We are making this content short and easy to digest because we know that if you are not here with us, it

Hello friends 👋 The Incubator Podcast welcomes Dr. Henry Lee, Associate Editor of the Textbook of Neonatal Resuscitation, to discuss the ninth edition of the Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP). They review major updates released October 22, 2025, including the extended 60 second delayed cord clamping, new guidance on cord milking, refined oxygen targets, ventilation parameters, and updates to airway management and corrective steps. They also highlight three new educationa

Hello friends 👋 In this special episode recorded live at the NeoHeart Conference 2025 in San Diego, California, Ben and Daphna sit down with Dr. Steve Abman, the Dr. John Patrick Cleary Living with Legends Keynote Address Speaker. A true leader in pediatric medicine, Dr. Abman serves as Professor of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, Co-Director of the Pediatric Pulmonary Hypertension Program, Director of the Pediatric Heart and Lung Center, and President of the American Pediatr

Hello friends 👋 In this episode of the Incubator Podcast, Dr. Mario Rüdiger, a prominent neonatologist from Germany, shares his journey into the field of neonatology, discussing the differences between European and American practices, the importance of flexibility in adopting new therapies, and the role of evidence in neonatal care. He emphasizes the significance of empowering parents in the NICU and advocates for a family-centered approach to care. The conversation also to

Hello friends 👋 In this episode, Ben and Daphna sit down with Cassie Carrigan and Sacha Force to share the story of Cassie’s son, Caleb, and the lessons his short life continues to teach. Cassie, a mother, mental health therapist, and NICU parent, walks us through Caleb’s complex diagnostic journey, multiple surgeries, and ultimately the genetic condition that explained his struggles. She reflects candidly on the emotional toll of repeated bad news, the challenge of decisio

Hello friends 👋 What if you could hold in your hands a roadmap to the most influential studies that have shaped modern neonatology? In this special episode of The Incubator Podcast, Ben and Daphna sit down with Dr. John Zupancic, Dr. Susanna Hay, and Dr. Roger Soll to discuss the release of their new book, 50 Studies Every Neonatologist Should Know. Together with their co-editors Dr. Barbara Schmidt and Dr. Haresh Kirpalani, the team has distilled decades of neonatal resear