In the U.S., September is National Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Awareness month.  A neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is a specialized hospital ward equipped with advanced medical technology to care for babies admitted for a variety of conditions. These conditions include babies born with a low birth weight or being born prematurely, and the NICU is where they can be treated for such complications and nursed to full health. 

The national dedication of this month came about in 2014 through the efforts of Project Sweet Peas, a nonprofit organization run by passionate volunteers who sought to build community around commitment to increasing awareness of the challenges faced in the NICU, and to expand resources to NICU’s nationwide. The project also offers resources for women and families who have gone through pregnancy and infant loss, and their website features a growing page and photo wall of the “tiniest and mightiest warriors” who are and were cared for in NICU’s.

The very concept of a neonatal care unit is a deep testament to the truth of the pro-life cause, speaking to the humanity of the newborn and preborn by the nature of its work. In the NICU, language of medical professionals tends to affirm the personhood of the preborn. They call the child younger than 37 weeks what he or she is- a “preterm baby”- instead of just a “fetus” or “pregnancy”, as many so-called reproductive health facilities would refer to her at the same age. 

It is no wonder, then, that the stories coming out of NICUs have strengthened solidarity in the fight against abortion and are still transforming hearts and minds every day. Recently, Pregnancy Help News reported the survival of a baby girl in the UK born at just 22 weeks old, making her one of the youngest surviving premature babies in the world. In an NICU, little Lyric Lura was able to recover from a grade 1 brain hemorrhage, while her mother was flooded with supportive messages on social media from Istanbul to Canada.

Pregnancy Help News went on to cite statistics indicating that the survival rate for extremely premature babies has doubled over the past decade, a medical breakthrough that has led to calls for Parliament to review current abortion laws. While abortion law has not been fully debated since 2008, Savanta ComRes polling says that 70% of women in the UK now want to see the time limit for abortion reduced to 20 weeks or younger. 

As September draws to a close, take a moment to honor all the babies, families, doctors and volunteers spending time in neonatal intensive care units around the world. The strength of these institutions’ life-affirming spirit is a joyful sign of hope for the pro-life movement. Their success reminds us of the truth that a child in the womb, scientifically, is a young human being, and whether she is “wanted” cannot change this fact. Let us keep all those working to support them in our thoughts and prayers.