Leading Pediatric and NICU Care with a Personal Touch
Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth is one of the most trusted names in pediatric care in Texas. Though widely known for its expertise across a wide range of childhood illnesses, what many don’t realize is that its Level IV NICU is among the most respected in the region. Families from across North and West Texas turn to Cook Children’s when their newborns require intensive medical attention after birth.
This is a place where medicine and compassion meet—where even the smallest patients receive world-class care from a team that understands the stakes couldn’t be higher.
Complex Cases Handled With Precision and Care
Cook Children’s NICU specializes in caring for critically ill newborns—particularly those born prematurely or with birth complications requiring advanced intervention. From infants with underdeveloped lungs to those facing congenital heart defects or neurological injuries, this unit is built to manage cases that smaller hospitals simply can’t.
It’s not just about access to ventilators or specialized monitoring. The NICU at Cook is integrated with pediatric surgical teams, a dedicated neonatal neurology group, and one of the region’s only fetal care centers—allowing families to transition seamlessly from prenatal concern to neonatal care. When seconds count, coordination matters.
Which Hospitals Transfer to Cook Children’s?
Given its location in Fort Worth, Cook Children’s functions as a transfer destination for rural and suburban hospitals across a vast swath of Texas, including:
Decatur (Wise Health System)
Mineral Wells (Palo Pinto General)
Stephenville (Texas Health Harris Methodist)
Granbury, Weatherford, and as far west as Abilene
Select hospitals in West Texas and the Texas Hill Country
These hospitals stabilize newborns as best they can before transport teams—sometimes via helicopter—move the babies to Cook for the kind of care that only a specialized pediatric hospital can provide.
What It Feels Like to Be a NICU Parent at Cook
No parent expects to hand their baby over to a team of specialists minutes or hours after delivery—but that’s often the reality when a child is born in distress. At Cook Children’s, families are treated not as visitors, but as part of the care team.
Parents can expect:
A NICU built for both function and comfort, with space for parental presence
Daily updates with physicians and nurses who welcome questions
Support from Child Life specialists, social workers, and chaplains
Access to rooms for rest and overnight stays—because parents need care too
What makes Cook different is the way it leans into the humanity of the moment. Yes, the technology is top-tier. But what families remember most is the way someone sat beside them and explained what was happening—not with clinical detachment, but with clarity and care.
A Note for Families Who Are Still Searching for Answers
Sometimes, even the best-equipped NICUs can’t undo the damage that occurred earlier—during labor, delivery, or the moments right after birth. If your child has been diagnosed with a life-altering condition and you're wondering if something could have been done differently, those questions deserve to be answered.
At Van Wey, Metzler & Williams, we listen carefully before we speak. We’ve helped families throughout Texas get the clarity—and the accountability—they need. If you’re facing a future you didn’t expect, and you think negligence might have played a role, we’re here to help you understand your options.
Quietly. Thoroughly. And always with your child’s story at the center.
