Neonatal Medicine and Follow-up

Montreal Children's Hospital

The Division of Neonatology (Montreal Children's Hospital) regroups thirteen neonatologists with various clinical (transport, extremely low birth weight, quality improvement, congenital anomalies, global health), educational (simulation, outreach, neonatal resuscitation) and research (respiratory control, pulmonary hypertension, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, long term health outcomes, health economics, neonatal brain repair) interests, as well as five pediatricians with expertise in the follow up of neonates with special needs.

Our approach to care is interdisciplinary, bringing together nurses, respiratory therapists, pediatricians, pharmacists, nutritionists, occupational therapists, social workers, Neonatal Nurse Practitioners (NNP) and consultants who treat acutely ill newborn infants (premature infants and term infants with serious medical and surgical disorders). The Montreal Children's Hospital's NICU was a leader in housing the first NNP provincial training program in Québec.

The MCH NICU is a level 3C referral center for patients from the greater Montreal area and across the province. In addition, we provide training to many healthcare professionals and physicians originating from many countries (Brazil, Thailand, Lebanon, Israel, Mexico, etc…) under the umbrella of the Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Residency Program at McGill.

History and Milestones

The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the Montreal Children’s Hospital (MCH) was founded in 1957. It later expanded and gained a reputation for its research and treatment of respiratory diseases in newborns under the guidance of Dr. Mary Ellen Avery, who was Chief of Pediatrics in the 1970s. In 1958, Dr. Robert Usher, then Director of the Intensive Care Unit at the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH), invented a needle to administer fluids to very tiny babies. Since then, these two units have collaborated on a number of therapeutic advances, such as the use of surfactant and nitric oxide, neonatal transport, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, high-frequency ventilation, and body cooling, all of which changed the face of neonatology. The Montreal Children’s Hospital is where these technologies were first introduced for the care of newborns in Québec.

In 2015, the MCH and RVH NICUs, merged into one large Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the new Montreal Children’s Hospital which provides ultra-specialized intensive care to babies now adjacent to a specialized maternal and perinatal unit. The unit has 52 beds, with single rooms and 4 twin rooms allowing neonates to receive care in a quiet environment that reduces the spread of infection while ensuring families’ privacy.

The NICU is part of a perinatal center which is a referral center for the entire province of Quebec. The Maternal-Fetal Medicine team at the Royal Victoria Hospital, adjacent to the Children’s, treats a high proportion of high-risk pregnancies requiring immediate attention at birth by neonatologists and other pediatric medical or surgical specialists.

The MCH NICU is a reference center for neonates with a variety of conditions at birth. These neonates are transported by a specialized transport team. The NICU admits approximately 900 neonates per year and the Royal Victoria Hospital counts 3,000 deliveries per year, many being high-risk.

The MCH's NICU is equipped with the most recent technologies for ventilation, including high-frequency oscillatory ventilators, Jet ventilators, as well as non-invasive ventilation therapies, including NIV-NAVA and equipment for therapeutic hypothermia, hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis.

Contact Us

Division Leadership

Division Director, MCH
Dr. Richard Gosselin

Associate Division Director, MCH
Dr. Marc Beltempo - Research
Dr. François Olivier - Clinical 
Dr. Michelle Ryan – Education

Neonatal Follow-up Clinical Program Director - MCH
Dr. Elise Couture

Division Director, JGH
Dr. Lajos Kovacs

Postgraduate Medical Education

Neonatal-Perinatal Residency Program Director
Dr. Michelle Ryan

Neonatal Follow-up Fellowship Program Director
Dr. Andreea Gorgos

Neonatal Hemodynamics Clinical Research Fellowship Program Director
Dr. Gabriel Altit

Neonatal Perinatal Medicine Scholar Fellowship Program
Dr. Marc Beltempo

Administrative Staff

MCH Administrative Assistant
mch.neonatology@muhc.mcgill.ca
514-412-4400 interim ext. 24452

MCH Administrative Assistant
programadmin-neonat.med@mcgill.ca
514-412-4400 ext. 24452

JGH Administrative Assistant
Judi Garon
514-340-7598