Abstract
The medical care of a newborn is fairly universal, regardless of the location of practice; however, small town providers do run into some situations that are unique to rural practice. The decisions we make as rural providers are often driven by the resources we do or don’t have at our disposal, such as a NICU or an intermediate care nursery along with specific pediatric specialists and equipment appropriate for neonatal diagnostic studies and procedures. Many of the decisions we face are not as straight-forward as one might think and can result in stressful situations for ancillary staff, providers, parents, and of course, our tiny patients. This presentation will focus on some of the challenges specific to rural newborn care. When all is said and done, we aim to provide the best care possible in spite of any resource limitations and being able to help these growing little humans is a feeling that is unmatched.
Learning Objectives
Participants will be able to:
- Identify unique challenges to rural newborn care in your area
- Identify and facilitate appropriate methods of transfer
Pre-Session Review Content & Assignment
- Read Chung (2017), Current scope of practice for newborn care in non-intensive hospital settings
- Answer the pre-session questions, based on the reading. Bring a print-out of your responses to
the Grand Rounds event. - Prepare for the team activity by selecting a small rural or Critical Access Hospital in your state
(see instructions below).
Presenter
