An Examination of Nicu Nurses' Training with Regards to Feeding Infants

Purpose: Infant oral feeding requires a coordinated sucking-swallowing-breathing pattern to be well established. Inconsistent feeding practices in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) can delay successful transition from gavage feeds to oral feeds. Feeding difficulties can increase length of stay in the NICU, as well as costs for both family and hospital. It is therefore essential that NICU nurses have the feeding skills they will need in order to help infants thrive. The …