Through a preemie's eyes: Reshaping neonatal care in Mississippi

Preemie for a Day aims to help NICU improve developmental care practices, rooted in the Neonatal Integrative Developmental Care Model. The interactive half-day sessions can engage up to 40 clinicians at a time, creating hands-on learning at scale while preserving the empathy-building experience at the heart of the program.

Mississippi faces one of the most urgent maternal and infant health challenges in the United States. In 2025, the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) declared a public health emergency in response to rising infant mortality rates across the state. Mississippi’s infant mortality rate is now at its highest level in more than a decade, with premature birth and low birth weight among the leading causes.¹ These challenges are compounded by deep disparities, including Black infants being more than twice as likely to die as white infants, and by limited access to care in many communities. Proposed strategies to reduce infant mortality across the state include expanding community health worker programs - an area where Philips is partnering with the Mississippi Public Health Institute to support change.

For NICU clinicians, the reality of infant mortality underscores the importance of advanced medical care, and importantly, how that care is delivered. Every detail of the sensory environment in the NICU plays a critical role in supporting – or harming – fragile, developing systems during a vital period of growth. Gentler touch, lower lights and quieter noise levels can all have positive effects that last a lifetime.

The class lasts only a few hours, but its goal is to influence care long after participants leave the classroom.

Through interactive workstations and guided simulation, participants experienced a preemie’s journey from birth through NICU admission, gaining insight into care at each stage. By simulating the sensory and physical realities of prematurity, Preemie for a Day helps clinicians identify small, meaningful adjustments they can make in their daily practice, such as reducing environmental stressors, supporting sleep, optimal positioning and incorporating enhanced family-centered care.

Participants leave the session with more than facts and figures: They walk away with a renewed sense of empathy, intention and practical steps they can bring back to their NICUs and care teams across Mississippi.

Addressing infant mortality and complex health disparities requires more than technology alone. Bringing Preemie for a Day to MSPQC connected Philips, clinical educators, communities and state and local partners around a shared goal: helping NICU teams improve developmental care practices across Mississippi.