Neonates with congenital cardiac disease face significant barriers to successfully achieving oral feeding on hospital discharge. Enteral feeding guidelines focus on physiological stabilisation and do not always address the developmental milestones necessary to support oral feeding. Future prospective studies are necessary to identify multimodal strategies to optimise early feeding.

Simulation training can be incorporated into discharge training for families of children requiring LTMV. Rehearsal of emergency management in a simulated clinical setting increases caregiver confidence to assume care for their ventilator-dependent child.

No abstract