Research & Practice
Developing a Family-Informed NG Tube Training Curriculum for the NICU
Nasogastric tubes (NGTs) are small, flexible tubes inserted in a patient’s nostril that extend to the stomach and may be used to provide hydration and nutrition support. There are many reasons a child may require an NGT, but in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) it is commonly used in infants experiencing: difficulty gaining or maintaining weight, intolerance to oral feeding, or aspiration risk with oral feeding.
This project, developed in collaboration with Seattle Children’s Home Care (SCH Home Care) coordinators, aims to develop a family-informed training curriculum for caregivers bringing home an infant from the NICU with an NGT. The SCH Home Care team identified emergency department visits for NGT replacement as a major stressor for families with children requiring NGTs.
This project aims to create a program that adequately prepares families for life at home with an infant with an NGT and minimizes emergency department visits for NGT replacement. To establish a curriculum, semi-structured interviews were conducted with four families whose children were discharged from the NICU with NGTs. Notes from interviews were analyzed for themes, which informed the development of the proposed curriculum in conjunction with insights form the SCH Home Care team.
Materials Available
Project Type(s): MPH Practicum, PH Concentration Poster
Author(s): Mariam Kayali
Program(s): Master of Public Health, RDN Training
Year: 2025
Adviser(s):