All video content available for media use.
To download broadcast-quality video and scripts, click on the links above. Once asset is chosen, the download arrow is in the bottom right hand corner.
Story Summary
It’s become a holiday tradition. Hospitals carefully dress their tiniest patients for holiday photos with Santa Claus. The precious photos delight the proud parents and others who see the snapshots on social media feeds. But there’s a lot of care and planning that goes into making those tiny tot photos a huge hit in the media.
NICU nurses like Francesca Nichols at MU Health Care’s Women’s Hospital in Columbia, Mo. take great care to make sure the pictures are taken without causing any discomfort to the little bundles of joy.
“It’s not an ideal situation to have a child in the NICU over the holidays,” Nichols said. “Anything we can do to give back to parents while the baby is in the hospital, we’re going to do that.”
Then Jolly Old Saint Nick himself appeared to snap photos with more than 30 of these precious patients.
“Just the joy of seeing families happy, seeing their expressions and knowing we are assisting in making memories for them,” Nichols said. “It’s something you don’t get to see in the NICU very often.”
Not only did Nichols and her team plan the outfits and get the babies dressed for Santa, they created ornaments to adorn each infant’s bed, ensuring the holiday spirit would last into the New Year.
Please contact us with any questions or issues.
Kent Faddis
Video Content Manager
MU Health Care
Office: 573-884-0532
Cell: 573-823-9499
faddisk@health.missouri.edu
