The development of a neonatal stool colour comparator

Area of Science:

• Neonatal care
• Pediatric gastroenterology
• Clinical observation tools

Background:

• Current policies for monitoring neonatal stool passage vary significantly between and within hospitals.
• Subjective assessments of neonatal stool color are unreliable, hindering accurate data collection.
• Objective monitoring is crucial for assessing infant health and feeding in the neonatal period.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce an objective stool colour comparator for neonatal stool assessment.
• To facilitate reliable data collection on the transition time of neonatal stool.
• To correlate stool color changes with infant weight loss for feeding adequacy assessment.

Main Methods:

• Development and implementation of a novel stool colour comparator.
• Utilizing the comparator for objective stool color recording by healthcare staff and mothers.
• Replacing subjective abbreviations (Mec, Ch, Y) with a numerical coding system.

Main Results:

• The stool colour comparator enables objective stool assessment, enhancing data reliability.
• The tool facilitates accurate documentation of stool color changes.
• Numerical coding has successfully replaced subjective abbreviations in clinical practice.

Conclusions:

• The stool colour comparator offers an objective and reliable method for monitoring neonatal stool.
• This tool supports midwives in assessing infant feeding quality and gastrointestinal function.
• Implementation at Ninewells Hospital demonstrates the practical utility of the comparator in postnatal wards.