The Last Thing Between This Preemie and Home Is Not His Lungs. It’s Nurses.

Look at this adorable face.

A baby who has never been home since the day he was born prematurely at 24 weeks is finally getting close enough that his parents can picture carrying him through their own front door.

One major thing still stands between Jackson and home: they need nurses.

Many people first met Jackson last December, when he was a tiny preemie weighing just over 2 pounds and still fighting to grow strong enough for doctors to remove his breathing tube. His parents were still waiting to hear their son cry for the very first time.

Months later, his mom Zoe shared an update that feels very different.

Jackson’s lungs are growing and getting stronger. He had a PEEP titration this week — a test doctors use to determine how much pressure his ventilator needs to keep his lungs open. Zoe says his medical team believes they can safely begin lowering that support from 15 to 12 over the next few weeks.

And there is something even bigger on the horizon.

Jackson is getting ready to come home for the first time in his life. His parents expect to finish all of their training by the end of this month, learning how to care for his trach, ventilator, feeding tube, and other needs at home.

But Jackson cannot be discharged unless enough private-duty nurses are in place to help care for him. Zoe says this is a hurdle that keeps some medically complex children hospitalized long after their families are ready to bring them home.

Think about how far this little boy has come.

Last December, his family was celebrating every gram of weight gain and praying his lungs would become strong enough to take the next step. Now they are talking about his bedroom at home, completing their training, and finding the nurses who can finally make discharge possible.

Jackson has done so much of the hard work already.

Now his family needs a few people with the right license — and a willingness to learn — to help get him across the finish line.

For everyone who prayed for this little boy when he weighed barely more than 2 pounds, keep those prayers going. Pray his lungs keep getting stronger. Pray the training goes smoothly. And pray the nurses he needs will be found so this baby can finally come home.

Source: Update shared by Jackson’s mother, Zoe, describing his progress after a 24-week premature birth and the private-duty nursing requirement standing between him and first-time discharge.