Babies born prematurely or needing specialized care after birth sometimes have challenges with feeding that require additional care and attention. We provide care to neonates while they are acquiring independent oral feeding skills in the Neonatal Feeding Enhancement and Development Program at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida.

We work with you to help facilitate advancement of oral feeding skills to reduce reliance on the nasogastric tube (NG tube) that helps to feed your baby while they have been receiving care in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In our clinic they will receive the essential follow-up care they need during the transition from hospital to home while working on oral feeding. We provide families with interdisciplinary support and resources to help your baby grow and thrive.

Our team includes a neonatologist, registered nurse, nutritionist, and speech and feeding therapists, who will all evaluate and treat your baby in our clinic. Our team works closely with the neonatologists and team that has cared for your baby in the NICU, as well as your baby’s pediatrician, providing continuity of care to help your baby meet their feeding and growth goals.

What to Expect

We see babies in the clinic who have been referred to us by their NICU care team. We will review your baby’s individual case to evaluate whether this clinic will best meet their needs. 

Your baby’s first visit with our clinic will occur one week after discharge. You will have at least two weekly visits after discharge, and then additional follow-up visits as directed by the care team based on your child’s needs.

You and your baby will meet with the clinic’s neonatologist, a registered dietitian who specializes in neonatal nutrition, and a pediatric speech-language pathologist who is specially trained in providing feeding therapy for infants with swallowing problems.

The registered dietitian will:

• Evaluate your baby for appropriate growth
• Assess nutritional intake
• Adjust the feeding plan as needed in collaboration with you and the other interdisciplinary care team members

The speech-language pathologist will provide:

• Therapeutic techniques to facilitate safe and developmentally appropriate feeding
• Parent/caregiver education regarding feeding techniques, and improving feeding developmental milestones
• Live support and coaching with an individualized infant feeding plan of care
• Continuity of care between interdisciplinary team members (physicians, providers, dietitians, and other therapists as needed)