Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children Welcomes March of Dimes ‘Every Baby Story Tour’

Hospital is the First Stop of National Bus Tour

Falls Church, VA – (October 16, 2007) — Come and share your special baby stories with the March of Dimes Every Baby Story Tour,” which will stop at Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children on Thursday, Oct. 18. The tour bus will crisscross the country on a 16-city, 28-day road trip to collect memorable, inspiring, and humorous baby stories from parents via video or computer. Parents can later view their stories and others through the March of Dimes web site.

WHAT:
March of Dimes “Every Baby Story Tour”

WHEN:
Thursday, Oct. 18
9 to 11 a.m.

WHERE:
Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children
3300 Gallows Road
Falls Church, VA
Bus will park between Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children and the Emergency Dept.

The tour is part of a new grassroots and integrated media project celebrating babies – those born healthy as well as those who need help to thrive. It begins Oct. 17 in New York City and will make stops across the country in such cities as Atlanta, Houston, Phoenix, Chicago and Los Angeles.

Inova Fairfax Hospital for Children’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), a 75-bed subspecialty level unit, is one of the region’s major neonatal referral centers for the sick neonate and/or infant. Earlier this year, the hospital became the site of Virginia’s first March of Dimes NICU Family Support project, a program which provides enhanced information and support to families of premature and other critically ill newborns.

For more information about the “Every Baby Story Tour”, log on to www.marchofdimes.com/everybaby.

Inova Health System is a not-for-profit health care system based in Northern Virginia that consists of hospitals and other health services including emergency and urgent care centers, home care, nursing homes, mental health and blood donor services, and wellness classes. Governed by a voluntary board of community members, Inova’s mission is to improve the health of the diverse community we serve through excellence in patient care, education and research.

The March of Dimes is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality. Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes funds programs of research, community services, education, and advocacy to save babies and in 2003 launched a campaign to address the increasing rate of premature birth. For more information, visit the March of Dimes Web site at marchofdimes.com or its Spanish-language Web site at nacersano.org.