Role of OT in the NICU

    To learn about the role of OT in the NICU setting I listened to a webinar done by Samantha (Sam) Monahan. She attended Boston University and currently works at St. Elizabeth's in Boston in Adult Acute Care and the NICU. This topic stuck out to me because it is a setting that I know very little about and honestly was not even sure if OT's were utilized in. I have always wanted to know more about the NICU setting in general and this was the perfect opportunity. NICU stands for Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. It is designed for babies that are born anytime before a gestational age of 37 weeks, new borns that are needing specialized care, babies with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), and the families of the babies being treated. One of the main roles of an OT in the NICU is to mimic the the environment the baby would be experiencing in the womb. An ideal environment would be dark, warm, humid, very quiet and enclosed with some sensation of pressure. However, how the NICU actually is makes this task very difficult. The NICU is always full of caregivers, lots of machines, monitors, loud beeps, alarms and moving parts. The ideal environment may not be completely possible, but the OT can make observations and changes to help the success of these babies. 

    OT's also need to observe how the baby is performing their occupations and form an intervention plan and strategies. These NICU baby's occupations are the same as every baby. They include surviving, ability to self regulate, communicate with the caregiver, smooth transitions from sleep to awake, growing and bonding with family. These occupations are observed by spending time with the baby and recognizing signs of organization or of distress. If a baby is exhibiting organizational signs it is a positive and they are on the right track. These babies will have their hands tucked in close to midline or in their mouth, be in a natural fetal position, making natural eye contact and not just gazing and also being able to use a pacifier. However, if a baby is distressed they will have their finger splayed out, body parts spread out away from midline, gaze at objects and may have sneezes hiccups and coughs often. Another key observation that needs to be made is about the baby's head shape. With the numerous machines and tubing that are hooked up to the baby, their head shape can be distorted. As an OT, you can help with positioning and movement to stop this progression and stop the need for helmets and other equipment in the future. OT is not the main caregiver in the NICU, but they are very important part of the team caring for each baby. With everything being said I throughly enjoyed this webinar and would definitely recommend!