NMH

NMH | 2024 52 Neonatology Neonatal Occupational Therapy (Aoife Tonge) 2 024 marked the first full year of Neonatal Occupational Therapy (OT) in the NMH NICU which continues to be delivered by Aoife Tonge, Senior Occupational Therapist. In 2024 neonatal occupational therapy interventions on the NICU focused on optimising the sensory environment for infants and providing family-centred developmentally-supportive care via parent education, promoting participation in parenting roles (e.g. bathing) and supporting infant mental health, together with the provision of multi-disciplinary (MDT) interventions via the ACORN Pathway and coordinating a weekly MDT developmental ward round (Jan –June). Aoife completed her International certification in Neonatal Touch and Massage in May 2024 and also completed the Bayley-4 upskill master training and the sensory beginnings master class. She presented at the NMH Public Health Nurse study day, Irish Neonatal HSCP study day, and the AOTI annual conference, and she co-facilitated a neonatal occupational therapy workshop at the Association of Occupational Therapists, (AOTI) Conference with her neonatal OT colleagues from the Coombe Women's and Health University Hospital, and CHI Temple Street. As an active member of the Dublin Inner City Infant Mental Health Network, Aoife presented alongside her NMH Occupational Therapy colleague in Perinatal Mental Health, Fidelma Shortall, on Sensory Overwhelm in the Infant and Parent. She participated in marking international events within NMH including International Readathon, HSCP day, kangaroo care day, and world prematurity day. A significant component of the neonatal occupational therapy services at the NMH in 2024 involved neurodevelopmental follow-up. Over 50 infants per year living within the NMH catchment area are followed up by the ACORN team in-person, while regional families have access to a range of online supports. Neonatal occupational therapy outpatient contacts, in conjunction with neonatal physiotherapy, speech and language and dietetics, were allocated to the following outpatient clinics/ webinars in 2024: THRIVE classes (8-10 per annum), online weaning webinar (12 per annum), 6 month corrected gestational age (CGA) developmental assessments (N=47), 12 month CGA BAYLEY III assessments (N=34). Other neonatal outpatient occupational therapy contacts in 2024 involved specific functional/sensory assessments and therapeutic interventions (e.g. screening hand assessment for infants, infant toddler sensory profile, Brazelton's newborn behavioural observations, and online mealtime observations with SLT/OT/Dietetics), alongside collaboration with community and national services supporting early intervention and onward referral to community services. ACORN Team ACORN means Allied Care Of at Risk Newborns. This multidisciplinary neonatal programme includes neonatal physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, dietetics, medical social work, pharmacy, and psychology. This HSCP team works with the neonatal medical and nursing teams to provide developmentally supportive care to high risk infants both in the neonatal unit and after discharge to infants in the NMH catchment area. High risk infants are those born ≤ 1500 g/ ≤32 weeks gestational age or following therapeutic hypothermia for Hypoxic Ischaemic Encephalopathy Petria O'Connell, CNM2 Baby Clinic reviewing Baby Alex Athorn.

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