Talking #TeamCWPT blog

Launched in 2023, the Neonatal Allied Health Professionals (AHP) Integrated Service exists to provide holistic, family-integrated care support for babies and parents on neonatal and special care baby units in Coventry and Warwickshire. The specialist team works across 3 units at University Hospital Coventry, George Eliot and Warwick Hospital.

The service is the UK's first system-wide neonatal AHP service, which means that wherever babies are being cared for, families have equitable access to neonatal physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and dietetics.

1 in 7 babies born in the UK are admitted to a neonatal unit each year because they were born early (before 37 weeks of pregnancy) or were unwell when born at full term. As survival rates for premature babies improve, greater emphasis is rightly being placed on improving babies' short- and long-term developmental outcomes. Working alongside the neonatal staff teams, the service supports these better outcomes for premature and unwell babies, helping them to move beyond a challenging start in life. 

The role of allied health professionals in neonatal care

Early neonatal AHP intervention aims to reduce the impact of prematurity and medical conditions on the development of babies in the neonatal unit. The team provides advice, guidance and support to parents and families and helps to train and upskill other professionals involved in neonatal care.

Occupational therapists (OTs) help to promote babies' brain development by supporting their comfort and addressing sensory-motor and environmental needs to help babies to sleep, play, interact and regulate their body systems in the neonatal unit and later in life. They also assist parents with bonding, positioning, feeding, and understanding their baby's behavioural cues and signs of distress.

Speech and language therapists (SaLT) provide specialist support to help to identify babies admitted to the neonatal unit at risk of feeding or early communication difficulties. This may be due to being born early or having complex medical conditions that affect their neurology and development, and/or functioning of the structures required for sucking and swallowing. They support babies and families to establish safe and positive oral feeding and support their early communication and language development. 

Physiotherapists support the motor development of babies in the neonatal unit. They are specialists in assessing and supporting neuromusculoskeletal development, movement, posture, and muscle tone and help parents recognise and respond to cues from their baby.

Dietitians provide expert, consistent nutritional care to sick and premature babies. Babies born early miss out on important nutrients they would normally get during pregnancy and are born with reduced nutrient stores. Their high nutritional needs can be challenging to meet due to the neonatal environment, their fragile condition, and how their bodies handle food. Reducing the risks of nutrition-related complications can significantly improve a baby's short-term and long-term outcomes, supporting their growth and brain development, especially in the critical early days.

The team's impact

94% of parents felt access to the AHP team and their developmental support made a positive difference to their unit experience and baby's future development.

The team explained: Although some of our work is very specialised, we also play vital roles in supporting parenting in the context of the neonatal intensive care unit and giving parents a voice in that.

For many families, their baby may move units depending on the level of care they need and to be closer to where they live. The team added: Having the consistency of offer is important, so when babies and families are being moved between units, being able to see a familiar face can bring a sense of comfort and consistency during what is a really traumatic time .

Feedback from parents:

I wouldn't have felt as confident to support my daughter's development on the unit and transitioning home without the support of the team. The team supported me to trust my intuition and support my child.

The team were incredible, we learnt so much from them, we're forever grateful of all the help we received. 

Without the AHP team, I would have been more worried and had unanswered questions about my baby. 

I'm so grateful for these extra services, each person made my experience better in a dark time. Keep up the great work. 

The team were incredible throughout our neonatal intensive care journey, and we learnt so much from them we're grateful for all the feedback and guidance we received.

The team is passionate about continuing to improve the experience of babies and families accessing neonatal intensive care. They have recently introduced a parent/family scrapbooking group to help parents process their experiences and focus on positive milestones. A project to improve positioning practices was shortlisted for the HSJ Patient Safety Awards 2025 and won the Improvement Poster Competition at the HSJ Patient Safety Congress. They continue to implement multiple quality improvement projects across the system to aim to improve equity and consistency with neonatal AHP input across all 3 units.