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Fifteen-minute consultation: Outcomes of the extremely preterm infant (<27 weeks): what to tell the parents
  1. Melanie Yeoh1,
  2. Sarah Rafferty2,
  3. Chia Saw3,
  4. Joanne Beedie4,5,
  5. Jonathan W Davis1,6,7
  1. 1 Neonatal Clinical Care Unit, King Edward Memorial Hospital Neonatal Clinical Care Unit, Subiaco, Western Australia, Australia
  2. 2 Neonatal Unit, Royal Maternity Hospital, Belfast, UK
  3. 3 Paediatrics, St John of God Midland Public Hospital, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
  4. 4 Helping Little Hands (Parent Support Charity), Perth, Western Australia, Australia
  5. 5 Parent Representative, King Edward Memorial Hospital Neonatal Clinical Care Unit, Subiaco, Western Australia, Australia
  6. 6 School of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
  7. 7 Newborn Emergency Transport Service Western Australia (NETS WA), Perth Children's Hospital, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
  1. Correspondence to Dr Jonathan W Davis, Neonatal Clinical Care Unit, King Edward Memorial Hospital for Women Perth, Perth, WA 6008, Australia; jonathan.davis{at}uwa.edu.au

Abstract

An extremely preterm infant is one born at less than 27 weeks’ gestation. Over time, survival rates in this population have improved. This cohort remains at high risk of mortality and life-long morbidity. The birth of extremely preterm infants is an important public health issue and one which concerns neonatologists, paediatricians, general practitioners and parents alike. This paper aims to provide guidance for the antenatal discussion between clinicians and expectant families and may serve as a template to facilitate open communication.

  • neonatology
  • ethics

https://doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2020-321178

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    Footnotes

    • Twitter @jonathan_davis3

    • Contributors All authors contributed to the drafting and redrafting of the manuscript. Ms Beedie is a parent representative for the NICU in King Edward’s Memorial Hospital and a co-founder of a parent support charity for NICU parents. She provided a view on the acceptability of the communication for parents and reviewed the manuscript.

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Commissioned; externally peer reviewed.