September 2015
PREEMIE MATTERS  SUMMIT HIGHLIGHTS
Didn't catch the June National Coalition for Infant Health ( NCfIH)  Preemie Matters Summit? Check out NCfIH's revised values and priorities-- influenced by Summit efforts--as well as this video  featuring U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA), U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA), and CNN Anchor Nancy Grace.
SHARE YOUR STORY
Do you know a vulnerable infant who's been denied respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)  prophylaxis? 
Share your  story 
confidentially. Premature infants born between 29-35 weeks gestation face restricted access to preventative treatment.  As we prepare for RSV season, we want to hear from parents, providers, and advocates who have experience with preemies who were denied RSV prophylaxis.
NCfIH MEMBERSHIP
Complete this brief form to join or maintain NCfIH  membership. There is no financial obligation. Membership is open to organizations and congressional leaders, and all individual preemie advocates will continue to receive newsletters, policy briefs, and NCfIH communications.
CALL FOR CUSTOMIZED PREEMIE PARENT COUNSELING
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recently recommended that doctors individualize counseling plans for parents based on their baby's chances of survival and the family's specific goals.  "[With preemies] there are many shades of grey," said Dr. Kristi Watterberg, chair of AAP's Committee on Fetus and Newborn. "It's difficult to tell people prescriptively... we don't know."

RESEARCH
Private NICU Rooms Improving Infant Outcomes
Recent evidence that private rooms may improve infant outcomes and get them well faster is shifting more hospitals to design their NICUs with private rooms.

NICU Admissions Increase but Babies Are Larger
NICU admissions increased from 6.4% to 7.8% from 2007 to 2012, but the data also shows that those babies were larger in size and less premature, researchers reported in a recent JAMA Pediatrics-published study.

RSV Found on Clothing of NICU Visitors
In an Australian study, detectable traces of RSV were found in 4% of swabs taken from the personal clothing of NICU parents and other visitors. Researchers also found RSV on 9% of nurses' computers, bed rails, and chairs next to the beds of infants.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
On September 9, 2015, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1462, the Protecting Our Infants Act of 2015 , championed by friend of NCfIH Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA). The bill requires federal and state health agencies to collaborate in monitoring and reducing opioid abuse cases and the subsequent problems that infants face when they have been exposed to these addictive drugs during gestation.

NEW RESOURCE
The National Association of Neonatal Nurses is launching two new CNENow! modules  coming this fall: 
  • The Management of Human Milk in the NICU
  • Improving Outcomes with Colostrum & Human Milk -- Evidence to Guide Practice
EVENTS
November 17-18, 2015 
Arlington, Virginia


October 24-27, 2015
Washington, DC
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