NICU-Specific Education

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NICU-Specific Education

The NTCB has compiled this list of educational resources to aid neonatal therapists in identifying opportunities to enrich their clinical knowledge and support their educational needs in preparation for the neonatal therapy certification application. This list of educational opportunities is provided to potential applicants as a courtesy and should not be construed as endorsement by the NTCB or as preferred providers. Other courses of a similar nature, that are not mentioned, may also be used to fulfill the requirements for neonatal therapy certification. Education used to satisfy the requirement for certification must be evidence-based.

If there are additional educational resources related to neonatal therapy not identified on this list, please email the NTCB at info@ntncb.com with suggestions. Please also contact us if you find any outdated information or nonfunctional links so they can be corrected.

Please click the links provided to further investigate each educational opportunity.

Professional Organizations

  1. Academy of Neonatal Nursing academyonline.org

        You must have an organizational login to access information about educational activities

  1. Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy https://pediatricapta.org/index.cfm

        Offers in person, on demand, text based and cohort based courses in a variety of pediatric topics.

  1. American Occupational Therapy Association aota.org/education-careers/continuing-education.aspx

        You must have an organizational login to access information about educational activities

  1. American Physical Therapy Association apta.org

        You must have an organizational login to access information about educational activities

  1. American Physical Therapy Association Neonatology Special Interest Group https://pediatricapta.org/special-interest-groups/sigs.cfm?sig=NN

        You must have an organizational login to access information about educational activities

  1. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association asha.org/ce/

        Offers a Rethinking Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing annual conference.  Also offers single courses including SLPs role in the NICU  and Supporting early feeding in the NICU.

  1. National Association of Neonatal Therapists https://neonataltherapists.com/

        Offers a host of courses in a variety of neonatal topics including bedside feeding assessments, torticollis, HIE, neonatal massage, edema management, swallowing, GI surgery, human milk, supporting parent bonding, and many, many more.

  1. National Association of Neonatal Nurses http://nann.org

        Offers the Developmental Care Specialist Designation. Also offers webinars about NICU related medical topics.

  1. Association of Paediatric Chartered Physiotherapists https://apcp.csp.org.uk

        You must have an organizational login to access information about educational activities

  1. Council of International Neonatal Nurses https://www.coinnurses.org/

        Offers webinars are NICU related topics including ROP, pain management, newborn assessment, and Neonatal infections.

  1. March of Dimes marchofdimes.org

        Offers several webinars in various topics related to the NICU including Creating a Culture of Respect, Easing Parent Trauma, Improving the patient experience, NAS, Parenting with Parents to Improve Safety, and Preventing Prematurity.

  1. NICU Parent Network https://nicuparentnetwork.org/

        Offers individual courses as well as a bundle involving topics including parent support, peer support, communication skills, family centered care, palliative and bereavement care, discharge planning and supporting staff to support families.

Annual Conferences

  1. Annual Graven’s Conference on the Environment of Care for High Risk Newborns https://paclac.org/https-paclac-org-gravens-conference/

        An annual conference focusing on nurturing the developmental needs of babies and the emotional and informational needs of their parents through evidence-based knowledge in neurodevelopmental science, developmental care, healthcare design, and family support

  1. Gold Neonatal Online Conference – goldneonatal.com

        Annual online conference focusing on research, trends, new ideas and hot topics in the world of neonatal care. Our goal is to provide evidence-based continuing education that will help bridge the gap between established protocols and practices and the rapid growth of new research.

  1. Infant Health Policy Summit https://www.infanthealth.org/summit

        An annual health policy summit exploring how policy solutions can improve the health and lives of infants and their families.

  1. Zero to Three Annual Conference zerotothree.org

        Held annually, the zero to three conference offers baby talks, lecture sessions, and issue intensives about the birth to three population.

  1. Pediatric Academic Societies https://www.pas-meeting.org

            Annual meeting focusing on multiple pediatric topics.

Feeding/Nutrition

  1. Shaker 4 Swallowing and Feeding: https://shaker4swallowingandfeeding.com

        Offers several courses related to feeding and swallowing in the NICU including Advanced Infant/Pediatric Dysphagia, NICU Feeding  and Swallowing: In the Nursery and After Discharge, All things NICU feeding, The Early Feeding Skills Assessment Tool, and Pediatric Videofluroscopic studies.

  1. NOMAS International nomasinternational.org

        Offers the NOMAS training program.  Also offers several online continuing education programs including NOMAS International  Summit, Neonatal and Pediatric Feeding Disorders – Series 1-6.

  1. Lactation Education Resources lactationtraining.com

        Offers various lactation education webinars including those specifically related to the NICU including a Breastfeeding in the NICU Course and Breasteps: Breastfeeding the Premature Infant.

  1. Fragile Infant Feeding Institute https://www.wonderbabies.org/fifi/

        The Fragile Infant Feeding Institute is a four and a half day intensive study of feeding and nutrition for infants with special needs.  The interprofessional institute focuses on hospital and community feeding practices and encourages close interaction between the  faculty and participants.

  1. Infant-Driven Feeding infantdrivenfeeding.com/idf-ed/

       Offers a training course for a developmentally supportive, individualized, cue-based feeding education program.

  1. Feeding Matters https://feedingmatters.org

       Hosts an annual conference on assessment and treatment of children with Pediatric Feeding Disorders.  Also offers a search engine  for educational offerings related to pediatric feeding disorders.

  1. Feeding Fundamentals feedingfundamentals.com

        Offers several feeding related courses including topics such as Gastroesophageal reflux, Communication Skills for Teamwork in the NICU Culture, and Development of Taste and Texture Preference. Also provides the SOFFI training involving an integrated approach to supporting oral feeding in preterm infants.

  1. Brown’s Medical (webinars) www.drbrownsbaby.com/medical/webinars

        Offers several webinars on infant and pediatric feeding and swallowing related topics including Breastfeeding essential with orofacial clefting, The late Preterm infant, Infant Driven Feeding, Multidisciplinary NICU teams, Infant Feeding Journey in the NICU, Assessing oral feeding readiness, Neuroprotection of Giving Milk Drops, Parenting path to oral feeding in the NICU, and many more.

  1. Abbott Health Institute https://anhi.org

        Offers several nutrition related NICU courses including nutrition for short bowel syndrome, promoting gut health and feeding tolerance, and probiotics.  Also offers other courses such as topics focusing on neonatal fundamentals, NAS, safe sleep, individualized feedings, postpartum anxiety and mental health, neonatal cardiovascular system, respiratory system, and alimentary system.

  1. Infant-Driven Feeding infantdrivenfeeding.com/idf-ed/

       Offers a training course for a developmentally supportive, individualized, cue-based feeding education program.

Assessments

  1. Brazelton Center, UK brazelton.co.uk/course-booking-nbo/

        Offers training in the Newborn Behavioral Observations Systems (NBO) and Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS).

  1. NICU Therapy Lab https://nicutherapylab.com/

        Offers training for administration of the SENSE program, the Preemie Neuro and Neonatal Eating Outcome (NEO) Assessment.

  1. NIDCAP Federation International nidcap.org

        Offers training in the NIDCAP program and APIB program.

  1. FINE Level one, UCL London https://www.bliss.org.uk/health-professionals/information-and-resources/resources-for-your-neonatal-unit

        Offers FINE training which offers a unique educational pathway in family centered developmental care including pre-term and newborn neurodevelopment, parent/infant relationships, observing and understanding infant behavior, managing stress/pain, sensorimotor experiences, and baby led feeding.

  1. General Movements Trust http://general-movements-trust.info

        Offers training for the Prechtl General Movement Assessment.

  1. Brown Center for the Study of Children at Risk brown.edu/research/projects/children-at-risk

        Offers training in administration of the NNNS-II.

Developmental Care

  1. Phillips Medical: usa.philips.com/healthcare

        Offers the Preemie for a Day program which is an interactive, multisensory training program focusing on training professionals in developmentally supportive care.  Also has the Global Wee Care program focusing on process improvement to standardized developmentally supportive care practices.

  1. Sensory Beginnings https://sensorybeginnings.com/

        Offers the Sensory Beginnings Mastery Course to help therapist analyze behaviors through the sensory system lens.  The Neonatal Nuture Course focuses on understanding sensory processing, family integrated care, and trauma informed care.

  1. Creative Therapy Consultants: creativetherapyconsultants.com/

        Offers several NICU related educational offerings including the Neonatal Touch and Massage Certification, NOLE: Foundation of Neurodevelopmental Care, NOLE: Getting Beyond NAS Diagnosis, NOLE: Next steps for Neonatal therapy, and Neuroprotective caregiving.

  1. Huggies Healthcare https://www.huggieshealthcare.com/en-us/education-and-research/education

        Offers an Every Change Matters Series that integrates the use of developmentally appropriate interventions during diapering (referred to as developmental diapering care) to support caregivers, which may help foster physical and development growth in infants.

Therapy In the NICU

  1. The Ladder Approach and The NICU Training Module http://www.otptinthenicu.com/index.htm

        Offers training regarding the Ladder Approach, an innovative and structured way to deliver therapy services in the NICU. The training module focuses on skills needed to practice and helpful tools for education of families and staff in the NICU.

  1. Ignite Neonatal Mentoring Program https://igniteneonatalmentoringprogram.com/

        Offered by NANT, Ignite is a core training and mentoring program for neonatal therapists.  The program includes 10 months of self-paced, on-demand learning, featuring 13 recorded webinar trainings. The trainings provide foundational education in the art and science of neonatal therapy.

Multiple NICU Topics

  1. Med Ed On the Go https://www.mededonthego.com/

        Video modules on various neonatal and NICU related topics.

  1. Medbridge Education https://www.medbridgeeducation.com

            Several webinars related to NICU related education including History of the NICU, Therapeutic Intervention in the NICU, Dysphagia Case Studies in the NICU, Feeding as a Co-occupation, Evaluation and Assessment of the NICU Neonate, Family Intervention in the NICU, and many more.

  1. Education Resources Inc (live courses) educationresourcesinc.com/courses-by-profession/

        Offers several NICU related webinars both virtual and in person centering around OT, PT, and SLP related NICU topics including Torticollis, Treating Infants and Families, Neonatal Therapy – Establishing Skills for Independent Practice, Babies’ Bodies and Brains, Treatment Strategies for improvement of oral, pharyngeal, feeding/swallowing, and respiratory coordination function, Feeding Tiny Humans, Breathing and Postural Control, Challenges and Solutions for Infants and Children with Complex Feeding and Swallowing Disorders, and many more.

  1. Synapse Care https://synapsecare.com/

        Offers several NICU related education offerings including: *Small Baby Course: practical tools to assess, implement, and sustain a small baby program. *Neonatal Brain Cooling Course – everything you need to know about HIE in the NICU *NCC Certification Exam for the NCC Neuro NICU Certification Program

  1. Summit Professional Education https://summit-education.com/

        Currently offers two NICU related courses – “Evidenced based Approach to Therapeutic Interventions” and “Addressing Mental Health from the NICU and Beyond”.

  1. CIAO Seminars ciaoseminars.com

        Offers NICU related courses including Creating Interdisciplinary Collaborative Feeding Teams, Feeding and Swallowing in the NICU, NICU Graduates and their transition home, NMES in Dysphagia Therapy in the NICU, Pediatric Case Studies, and the Preemie Journey: Therapists are key.

  1. DandleLion Medical (webinars) dandlelionmedical.com

        Offers webinars including The Mouth-Body Connection, Harnessing the Power of Families to improve NEC outcomes, Pediatric Cardiac Disease, Dangersou things we used to do in Neonatology, The Work-Life Balance Myth, and many more.  Also offers positioning pearls videos, pictorial instructions and neurodevelopmental care references and white papers.

  1. Pampers Professional https://www.pampersprofessional.com/s/ce-courses

            Several course offerings including healthcare and justice, multidisciplinary team challenges, health disparities, NAS, skin care, sleepy safety, and many more.

Certifications

  1. National Certification Corporation https://www.nccwebsite.org
  1. Neonatal Therapy Review and Exam Prep Course https://neonataltherapycertification.com

        Offers several modules of education related to neonatal care with special focus on the neurological issues and extremely low birth weight.  Offers specialized certification exams which therapist are eligible to complete including C-ELBW, and C-NNICU.

  1. Engage Grow Thrive https://engagegrowthrive.com/

        Offers the Small Baby Care Specialist Program focusing on evidenced based practice in the care of the small baby. Classes are also offered individually from the program in topics such as pre-feeding strategies, apnea of prematurity, thermoregulation, prevention of growth failure, maternal role attainment, prevention of BPD, teamwork and communication, antenatal care, ROP, kangaroo care, family partnered care, and many more.

  1. Caring Essentials Collaborative, LLC caringessentials.net/

        Offers the Trauma Informed Professional (TIP) Certificate Program.

* Note some of the educational offerings may contain content that does not relate to the NICU.  Only those hours in education directly related to the NICU can be used to satisfy the educational requirement for Neonatal Therapy Certification.

NICU Therapy Fellowships 

In addition, there are several fellowship opportunities which can be used towards the mentoring hours required for NICU certification. The following locations offer NICU related fellowship programs.

  1. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia: https://www.chop.edu/pediatric-fellowships/physical-therapy-neonatology-fellowship-program
  2. Nationwide Children’s Hospital: https://www.nationwidechildrens.org/for-medical-professionals/education-and-training/residency-programs/pediatric-physical-therapy-residency
  3. Rocky Mount University of Health Professions: https://rm.edu/neonatology/
  4. UNC: https://www.uncmedicalcenter.org/uncmc/professional-education-and-services/rehabilitation-clinical-education/physical-therapy-programs/nicu-physical-therapy-fellowship/

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Testimonials

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

“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
“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
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
“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
“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 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
“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
Heidi Stubb
OT, CNT
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

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