The Fabulous Five: Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health Newest Certified Neonatal Therapists (CNTs)

Home
The Fabulous Five: Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health Newest Certified Neonatal Therapists (CNTs)

We are happy to introduce a team of 5 incredible neonatal therapists in Indianapolis, Indiana, who demonstrated unwavering dedication while simultaneously juggling the opening of their newest facility and achieving neonatal therapy certification. Their certification shines as a symbol of their commitment and passion for what they do. Attie Vogler, PT, MPT, Brittany McFarland, OTR/L, Erica Aloia, DPT, Erin Hock, OTR/L, and Kelly Adkins, OTR/L are the “Fabulous Five” and newest CNTs at the Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health.

The team shared that the path toward pursuing certification did not come without barriers. They faced challenges of lack of time, transitioning to a new space, and funding. 

For this group of dedicated therapists, time was the biggest barrier. High patient census impacted the amount of time they could devote to studying and discussing the articles provided in preparation for the certification exam. Yet, despite this obstacle, they leaned into the group’s energy and strength for support and knowledge. As a team, they envisioned implementing the knowledge and insight gained to provide safe and effective therapy interventions to fragile high-risk infants and their families.

Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health has a Level 4 NICU with 60 beds, as well as a cardiovascular intensive care unit. In November 2021, a new Level 3 Maternity Tower providing 40 beds, opened for families, extending skilled therapeutic services to an even greater number of families and newborns in that area. These vibrant units are served by 4 occupational therapists, 4 physical therapists, and 5 speech-language pathologists. Like many hospitals across the country, some of these therapists split time between NICU and other floors, however they report spending the majority of their time in the NICU. 

The story behind how the “Fabulous Five” came to pursue Certified Neonatal Therapy (CNT) credentialing is familiar, nonetheless just as inspiring. It started when some of their pioneering speech-language pathologists became certified in 2020. Cara Drake-Luecking, CCC-SLP, CLC, CNT, Jessica Rak, CCC-SLP, CNT, and Kerrie Corea, CCC-SLP, CLC, CNT were the pioneers who not only paved the way for the neonatal therapists at Riley Hospital for Children but also contributed to the group’s certification exam preparation by sharing their knowledge and resources. Soon, the benefits of CNT status were clear to fellow therapists, as well as to the leadership. The perfect timing came for these additional 5 therapists to get certified with the opening of the Maternity Tower.

“…we thought it was a great asset to our team with the new Maternity Tower opening. So, we pursued this as a team!” 

During this time of transition, Riley Hospital for Children’s leadership recognized the value of having their staff demonstrate the best knowledge in practice and research through the neonatal therapy certification and found a way to secure a grant to help cover the cost of certification. The Riley Children’s Foundation established a fund to support the perinatal center as part of the opening of the Maternity Tower and dedicated a percentage of the fund to help support the therapists in pursuing certification. In doing so, they ensured a level of excellence within the therapy team serving high-risk infants and families in the new Maternity Tower. 

“We all work very closely together and lean on each other for advice and support, and I now feel that our disciplines have a better understanding of each other with the new knowledge we have all gained!” 

The team demonstrated to leadership that it was a good investment to become certified. Having a team whose expertise in their practice was validated and advanced through the rigorous certification process elevated overall inter-professional neonatal therapy practice standards. In addition, materials provided to assist applicants with certification exam preparation served as a great one-stop learning resource to advance the knowledge essential for the effective delivery of neonatal therapy. This team shared excitement about the certification process and believed the knowledge gained through this process will enhance care delivery to the patients they serve. 

“The benefits of pursuing the certification include the education and information we learned, but also the certification itself helped further our mission to provide high-quality patient care here at Riley that aligns with our values of Purpose, Excellence, Compassion, and Team.”

When asked about what becoming certified has done for the team, Brittany McFarland shared how it has personally changed her practice: 

“I feel empowered to provide high-quality care and have gained valuable knowledge that has furthered my ability to serve my patients, especially as an occupational therapist with new knowledge of feeding/swallowing, sensory systems, and intervention strategies.” 

The “Fabulous Five” chose to turn the challenges they encountered becoming CNTs into opportunities to grow individually in their expertise and personal knowledge as well as to strengthen their bond as a team through demonstrating competency in providing services for high-risk infants and their families by achieving certification.

"

Testimonials

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

“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
Vanessa Nimon
PT, 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
“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
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
“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 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 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
“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

Navigation

Contact

Social

Facebook-f Twitter Linkedin Instagram

Useful Links

Login

Search

Copyright ©2024 Neonatal Therapy Certification Board. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy
Designed by RSNL Creative