Parental Concerns about Newborn Feeding Post Hospital Discharge
Lauren Fuhrman1, Erin Sundseth Ross
1Lauren Fuhrman is a Speech and Language Pathologist and Lactation Consultant, Rose Medical Center, Denver, CO. Erin Sundseth Ross is a Speech and Language Pathologist, Rose Medical Center, Denver; Faculty, Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions, Provo, UT; Clinical Instructor, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO; and President, Feeding Fundamentals, LLC. Dr. Ross can be reached via e-mail at eross@feedingfundamentals.com.
Insights
New parents frequently have questions about infant feeding after hospital discharge. A new feeding support group was established to address these common concerns and offer guidance for improved infant feeding experiences.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal care
- Pediatric nutrition
- Speech-language pathology
Background:
- Post-discharge newborn feeding education often overlooks preterm infants.
- Feeding difficulties are common for infants after neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) discharge.
- Parents commonly seek information regarding infant feeding post-hospitalization.
Purpose of the Study:
- To gather data on parental feeding questions and effective strategies post-discharge.
- To inform the development of a no-cost newborn feeding clinic for all new parents.
Main Methods:
- A speech-language pathologist provided feeding support within an existing lactation group.
- Data collected included parent questions, educational interventions, and feeding modifications.
- The study involved 68 families, including those from the well-baby nursery and NICU graduates.
Main Results:
- Maternal inquiries predominantly concerned bottle feeding and recognizing infant satiety cues.
- Common interventions involved testing various bottles and feeding positions to enhance infant comfort.
- Seventy-five percent of infants studied were full-term.
Conclusions:
- New parents commonly experience challenges and have questions regarding both breastfeeding and bottle feeding.
- The data supported the continuation of a no-cost infant feeding support group to aid parents post-discharge.
- The support group aims to address parental concerns and provide practical feeding guidance.
Background:
Post hospital discharge newborn feeding education mostly focuses on breastfeeding and is primarily targeted at term infants. Preterm and late-preterm infants are at risk for poor feeding postdischarge, and feeding challenges are common after discharge from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Families often have questions about feeding their infants after hospital discharge.
Purpose:
The goal of this project was to collect data on what questions parents have about feeding their baby after discharge and what strategies may be helpful to improve feeding experiences. These data were intended to inform plans to offer a no-cost newborn feeding clinic for all new parents after hospital discharge.
Methods:
A speech-language pathologist attended a preexisting lactation support group to meet with families and provide feeding support. The speech-language pathologist collected data on types of questions parents asked, education provided, and changes made during the visit to improve feeding experiences.
Results:
Sixty-eight families were seen in the first 6 months of the clinic. Fifty-eight were families of babies cared for in the well baby nursery; 10 were families of graduates from the NICU. Seventy-five percent of the infants were born full-term. Maternal questions focused primarily on bottles and recognizing satiety. The most commonly provided changes included trials of different bottles or positions to improve infant comfort during feedings.
Clinical Implications:
New parents often have questions about breastfeeding and bottle feedings after going home. Using these data, a decision was made to continue the no-cost infant feeding support group to address questions and provide guidance to parents after hospital discharge.
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