therapy involved in nicu

[slp1]

Hi everyone,

I'm curious about the opinions of NICU nurses regarding speech therapy involvement with high risk/poor feeders/infants with dysphagia in the NICU. Do you feel the speech pathologist's presence is a positive or a negative?

[prmenrs, RN]

It depends on the experience of said therapists. I often feel like I'm teaching them how to feed a baby. Which is ok, but don't come in like the "expert" until you've fed several babies.

jmho

[SteveNNP, MSN, NP]

We have a feeding specialist (non-degree) who is phenomenal at teaching kids and parents (and nurses) to feed. She has a treasure chest of special nipples and bottles she hides, and uses when kids need them.

In terms of speech therapists... they usually just apply clinical terminology to what us nurses already know. He has poor oral tone. He doesn't have good coordination. His suck/swallow/breathe is poorly organized. Cheek support. Chin support. Pacing. This is stuff we learn after the first silly 34 weeker we take care of as a new grad :)

[slp1]

We have a feeding specialist (non-degree) who is phenomenal at teaching kids and parents (and nurses) to feed. She has a treasure chest of special nipples and bottles she hides, and uses when kids need them.

In terms of speech therapists... they usually just apply clinical terminology to what us nurses already know. He has poor oral tone. He doesn't have good coordination. His suck/swallow/breathe is poorly organized. Cheek support. Chin support. Pacing. This is stuff we learn after the first silly 34 weeker we take care of as a new grad :)

What makes someone a feeding specialist without a degree? Do they have a certificate?

[SteveNNP, MSN, NP]

What makes someone a feeding specialist without a degree? Do they have a certificate?

Not that I know of. As I've heard tell, ours started out as a feeder, and self-taught advanced feeding techniques over the years.