A Quality Improvement Project to Reduce Time to Full Enteral Feeds for Very Low Birth Weight Neonates

BACKGROUND: Adherence to standardized feeding guidelines has been proposed as a strategy to limit morbidity in very low birth weight neonates. Fostering adherence limits the variability in medicine that affects the quality of patient care. The aim of this study was to reduce by 20% the time to full enteral feeds in very low birth weight neonates in the NICU within a 12-month period. METHODS: In a level IV regional perinatal center with low utilization of its feeding protocol, a 12-month quality improvement project was conducted with a key intervention of a feeding schedule calculator based on the unit standardized feeding protocol. Through studied education and implementation cycles, these feeding schedules were used to reduce time to full enteral feeds while monitoring adverse events related to their use. RESULTS: During the course of this quality improvement project, our time to full enteral feeds of 160 ml/kg/day of feeds reduced from 24.7 days to 17.7 days after process changes with special-cause variation noted on control charts. We also showed a significant reduction in mean central line duration over the course of the project from a baseline of 19 days to 14.5 days. CONCLUSION: Through a key intervention of a feeding volume calculator, we were able to reduce the time to full enteral feeds in neonates without any increase in adverse events of necrotizing enterocolitis or poor weight gain.