Introduction: Late preterm infants may have prolonged stay in hospital due to increased care needs and a lack of community support. A neonatal early supported transfer to home (NEST@Home) intervention was introduced. We explored professional perceptions of barriers and facilitators to implementation of NEST@Home.

Methods: Neonatal healthcare professionals in England participated in group interviews based on the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Findings: Perceived barriers included lack of facilities, poor clinical buy-in, budget restraints, staff shortages, absence of policy, and a lack of commissioning support. Perceived facilitators to implementation included healthcare professional’s positive attitudes, pre-discharge planning, parent education, parent training, and loan of monitoring equipment.

Conclusion: This study identified individual, interpersonal, and organisational features that may facilitate or impede the NEST@Home intervention. Further research is needed to identify how this intervention impacts outcomes, and to understand the experience of parents receiving NEST@Home.

To read the paper resulting from the study, please follow this link.

If you would like to find out more about the project, please contact Dr Kathryn Berzins kberzins@uclan.ac.uk