Hand in Hand Through Two Journeys, One Heart: A NICU                                                  Therapist and Father’s Story

            Floyd Tran OTD, OTR/L, NTMTC, CNT began his occupational therapy (OT) career over a decade ago.  He started work in adult acute care, but found his professional calling providing therapy services in the Neonatal Intensive Care unit (NICU). After working as a neonatal therapist for several years and obtaining the Certified Neonatal Therapist® credential, Floyd’s professional life and personal life collided in March 2024 when he became a dad to triplet boys who were born 2 months early at 32 weeks gestation. He found that his therapy clinical experience did not prepare him for the emotional rollercoaster of parenting in the NICU. As his boys achieved each NICU milestone- weaning out of the isolette to breathing without support, each on their own individual journey to discharge, he found the experience life changing, deepening his empathy and strengthening his advocacy. He had the opportunity to work with Elizabeth Jeanson,PT, DPT, DCS, NTMTC, CNT, throughout his boys’ hospitalization, which provided him with a sense of peace and confidence in the care his boys received throughout their NICU stay.  The experience of having preterm infants has changed Floyd’s practice and allows him to show up for families in a different way compared with before his boys were born.  When appropriate,  he is able to share his journey with colleagues and patients and this allows him to advocate for family centered care at the highest possible level.

Deepening Commitment:  Why Pursue Neonatal Therapy Certification®

When Floyd set out to become a Certified Neonatal Therapist®  (CNT® ), his motivation came from a place of wanting to offer the best evidenced based care for his most vulnerable patients—and to the families who love them. The certification process pushed him further than he expected. He notes that he  was challenged to think harder, advocate louder, and trust his clinical reasoning skills more. Becoming certified strengthened his understanding of all facets of neonatal therapy care, family centered healing, and trauma-informed practice.

When he completed his certification exam and found out he had passed, he shared that he cried. He noted that he had poured every part of himself into becoming a better therapist, and that moment wasn’t just about passing the exam, but about honoring infants and families that he serves.

Today, Floyd proudly wears his Certified Neonatal Therapist® (CNT®) pin every day. The pin is small, but carries great meaning. Floyd has found that wearing the pin sparks conversations and every time someone asks him about it, he is provided with an opportunity to share what it stands for. This allows him to share with families how their infant is in the hands of someone who has fought hard to be worthy of their trust. 

Advocacy with Heart: How certification strengthens your voice for families

            Floyd’s clinical validation through becoming at CNT® and lived experiences as a NICU parent changed the way he views his practice. Whenever he walks into a NICU bed space, he doesn’t just see therapy goals and plans of care, but rather sees fear, hope, uncertainty, and resilience all wrapped into one. He advocates with a newfound strength- not just for the most optimal plan of care, but for the emotional safety, autonomy, and confidence of every parent who is fighting to stay strong for their infant and involved in their infant’s care.

            He has learned that the smallest moments of connection- a warm smile, a listening ear, a hand hug, an opportunity to pause and breathe in a chaotic space- can change everything. Those moments stay with families long after the NICU stay ends.

To Therapists and Caregivers: Lessons Learned Standing in both worlds

            For therapists thinking about becoming a Certified Neonatal Therapist® (CNT®), Floyd states that “it is absolutely worth it”. Additionally, he shares that “certification not only gives you more clinical tools, but also gives you the confidence, credibility, and strength to walk alongside families in their most vulnerable moments”.  He goes on to state that being a CNT® shapes you into a strong, more compassionate version of yourself—and what a beautiful gift that is for you to provide to your patients and families.

             For parents who are currently experiencing parenting in the NICU and are reading this, Floyd wants you to know that “you are your baby’s biggest gift. Your voice, your touch, your presence—they matter more than anything and you know your baby better than anyone else.” He encourages you to trust this deep knowing, ask questions, speak up, even in the quiet moments as you are laying the foundation for your baby’s future.

 

                                                                                                  

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Testimonials

See what others have to say about their experience with us!

“I feel like I come to the NICU with a wider breadth of knowledge and appreciation for all the aspects of developmental care.”
Julie Ecclestone
MA, CCC-SLP, CNT
“As a new therapist, I was passionate about achieving certification to demonstrate competence and promote our profession as an advanced area of practice. Following extensive mentorship in the NICU, and after meeting the minimum requirements for certification, I became a certified neonatal therapist! I am thrilled to be a part of a growing profession who now has a successful pathway for developing competency that will continue to establish our profession as an essential component of NICU care.”
Lisa Olsen
OTDR/L, CNT
Heidi Stubb
OT, CNT
“I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to become a Certified Neonatal Therapist (CNT) in 2018, through the Neonatal Therapy Certification Board (NTCB).I believe this qualification is very relevant to practice in the United Kingdom (UK) as it helps raise the profile of neonatal therapy and also promotes a core knowledge base and practice. I truly believe that all neonatal therapists should have the same theory and knowledge base when working with this high-risk population, their intervention and level of involvement for each patient may well be slightly different. The certification process requires collaborative working. I am extremely fortunate in my setting to have a speech and language therapist who was prepared to relentlessly ask me questions on neonatal feeding, until she felt I was competent enough to the take the exam. I hope that more neonatal therapists in the UK consider taking this examination, the more people who talk about neonatal therapy, the louder our voices will be. I hope that one day every family and their baby who enter the neonatal unit continue to have access to good medical and nursing care, but also have access to all neonatal therapy; occupational therapy, physiotherapy and speech and language therapy. I hope that every therapy discipline has the credentials to highlight their specialty and knowledge and that no family is asked to choose between receiving occupational therapy or physiotherapy or speech and language therapy again. I believe that becoming certified in neonatal therapy is definitely a step in the right direction.”
Emily Hills
OT, MSc, CNT, NTMC
“The process of preparing for the neonatal therapy certification exam was as beneficial as taking the examination because of the knowledge gained. The resource list is invaluable and I refer to it almost daily.”
Lauren Adams
PT, PCS, CNT
“I have spent many days fighting for respect and proving myself to other professionals in the NICU. Earning the title of Certified Neonatal Therapist has helped minimize that fight.”
Casey Manning
M.S. CCC-SLP, CNT, NTMTC
Vanessa Nimon
PT, CNT
“I pursued the Certified Neonatal Therapist Certification because working with infants in the NICU is a passion of mine. It has grown exponentially through the years and I felt the time was right to prove to myself, my team, and my management staff that I had the skills and competency to lead in the NICU.”
Cameron Harris
OTR/L, NTMTC, CNT
“As a speech pathologist in the NICU, I was initially hesitant to become a CNT because I thought it would be more geared towards OT/PT studies. What I learned in my journey towards the certification is that everyone who comes in contact with an infant in the NICU benefits from the complex knowledge of neuro development. A different mindset, apart from simply “safe feeding” engulfed my daily practice. My OT coworker (and also CNT) and I began to tag-team ways to incorporate gentle, kind touch into each interaction with the infants. Often our efforts “rubbed off” on other coworkers and parents. My feeding skills have been enhanced by my all-in focus when encountering each baby. It’s not just safe feeding with no aspiration, it’s enjoyable experiences at each feeding time, whether bottle feeding or tube feeding. It’s preventing severe oral aversions in complex cases instead of undoing negative feeding experiences for years to come. I am a better therapist because of my studies to become a CNT.”
Cynthia Armstrong
M.S., CCC-SLP, BCS-S, CNT
Before the exam:
“The Neonatal Therapy Certification process has made me a more well rounded developmental care specialist. It has forced me to step out of my feeding/dysphagia bubble and I have been able to apply my new knowledge every time I interact with a baby and their caregivers.”

After the exam:
“The test was a challenging yet fair representation of what an advanced NICU therapist should know. I strongly encourage every NICU therapist to pursue certification. You owe it to your patients to be the best therapist you can be!”
Chelsea Moss
MA, CCC-SLP, IBCLC, CNT
“I was so worried that I would fail the exam (and be embarrassed) that I did not tell my boss I was taking it. Then I took it and found out right away that I aced the exam.It helped me be more confident in myself as a clinician. Reading the literature that was provided was great in helping me prepare and helped me understand what parts of my practice are evidence based.”
Ruth Wilkerson
OTR, CLC, NTMC, CNT

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