Follow-up Care

Outpatient appointments

Babies born very prematurely or with ongoing medical problems will be offered routine outpatient appointments (with the consultants who have treated them on the unit) to monitor development and progress. This is usually written on an appointment card and given to you before discharge if required, but may be sent in the post.

Child Development Centre (CDC)

If our consultants feel that your baby might benefit from some extra physiotherapy, speech therapy or occupational therapy, they will refer you to the CDC. The department consists of experienced and highly trained therapists to help the development of children as well as offering support and advice to families and carers.

Guthrie test

Although all babies have Guthrie tests at 6 days of age, early babies also need a repeat guthrie test when they are 36 weeks old corrected age. If they are discharged before they reach this age, nursing staff will arrange for a community midwife to visit to repeat this test.

Hearing tests

The hearing screening staff try to see all babies on the unit before discharge. Sometimes this is not possible (often because the baby is not yet old enough to be screened) in which case an outpatient appointment will be sent to you.

Eye tests

Premature babies on the unit have routine eye checks performed. These often need to be repeated every week or two until a baby is slightly older. An outpatient appointment will be sent to you if it is necessary for your baby to return for further checks.