A Retrospective Study of High-Risk Infants: Insights From a Regional Hospital in Victoria, Australia

To determine the magnitude of high-risk infants cared for at a regional hospital in Victoria, Australia and to identify the resources required to care for them.

A retrospective study was conducted between January 2017 and December 2019 in a regional hospital in Victoria, Australia. Data of high-risk neonates and their associated risk factors were collected from electronic and physical medical records. Simple descriptive statistics were used to summarise and report the data. Follow-up was proposed based on the high-risk factors as per already known follow-up protocols.

An average of 848 births were registered annually. The special care nursery (SCN) within the regional hospital received an average of 260 admissions per annum. Of the admissions to the SCN, 47% of infants had high-risk factors. Approximately 90% of the high-risk infants were inborn and 10% were outborn. Prematurity, small for gestational age (SGA) and adverse socio-demographic variables were the most common risk factors across all 3 years. Approximately 43% of high-risk infants had two or more risk factors. The prevalence of these high-risk factors between the 3 years remained consistent.

A considerable number of high-risk neonatal admissions were recorded in this regional hospital which serves a large proportion of socio-economically disadvantaged patients. Customised and co-located multidisciplinary team (MDT) follow-up of these high-risk neonates is crucial. Findings can inform local guidelines for MDT neurodevelopmental follow up program to prevent long term adverse outcomes.