Neonatology

St Michaels Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is one of 3 regional specialist units caring for any baby born extremely prematurely (below 27weeks). It also is the regional specialist unit for any newborn baby born with complex cardiac or surgical problems.

The Neonatal Dietitians work closely with the neonatal medical/ nursing team, the surgeons, speech and language therapists, physios, the breastfeeding support team and community neonatal nurses to support growth and feeding of these often extremely complex and nutritionally very vulnerable babies.

We input to decisions about intravenous feeding, monitor growth and tolerance whilst babies transition from intravenous to tube feeding and from tube feeding to, where possible, oral feeding. We attend regular ward rounds, discharge planning meetings and outpatients clinics. Once local babies have gone home we provide follow up through close liaison with the community neonatal nursing team and for those babies on tube feeding we liaise with the home tube feeding team. We liaise closely with and support Paediatric Dietitians around the region when babies are discharged to their local units. 

Dietitian guidance

For dietitian guidance please click here.