Your premature baby at home after discharge - PDF checklist
This checklist helps you prepare everyday care after discharge from the neonatal unit. Use it with your baby’s team and the people taking over care. It does not assess readiness for discharge or your baby’s condition. Premature babies have different needs; a current, individual plan is the starting point. Ticks do not confirm safety, caregiver competence or completion of procedures.
Caregivers need to understand the plan
Before leaving, review the discharge summary, feeding, ongoing care and contacts together. Say what you do not understand and which tasks you feel unsure about. Ask for a demonstration, practice and another explanation. If your baby has prescribed treatment or home devices, instructions for their use and for handling problems must come from the team. Do not choose settings or procedures from this checklist. Agree how to get clarification after returning home.
Follow-up and feeding follow your baby’s own plan
Agree feeding and growth monitoring with your baby’s healthcare team. Do not change prescribed care based on comparison with another baby. Gather follow-up dates, documents and questions; ask who coordinates tests and appointments. If there are many appointments, explain difficulties with transport or arrangements. Ask the team whether and how to account for corrected age when discussing development. This checklist contains no reference ranges, calculator or assessment of progress.
Home sleep has its own safety rules
For every sleep, place your baby on their back in a separate cot in the caregiver’s room. Use a firm, flat, well-fitting mattress with a fitted sheet. Do not add pillows, bumpers, nests, toys, loose bedding or weighted accessories; keep the head uncovered. Do not sleep with a premature baby in the same bed, on a sofa or in an armchair. Positioning used in a monitored unit is not an instruction for home sleep. Discuss questions with the team before discharge; a monitor does not replace a safe sleep space.
The family needs support too
After hospital care, relief, joy and worry can coexist. Tell the team what support you need. Arrange specific adult help, meals, rest and care for other children. Adapt visits to individual advice; the checklist does not prescribe visitor numbers or days of isolation. Caregivers should know the current plan and contacts. If feeling overwhelmed affects everyday functioning, ask the healthcare team for help for yourself.
Preparation checklist
Gather the plan and contacts
- Collect the discharge summary and current instructions; ask for explanations of unclear wording and changes from the unit’s advice.
- Record contacts for the team and local help, including out of hours; discuss when to use each one.
- Confirm who received the treatment summary and who will provide ongoing care; do not assume the documents arrived.
- List follow-up appointments and who will arrange them; ask what to do if you cannot attend.
Agree everyday care
- Discuss the individual feeding plan and signs of difficulty; agree whom to contact if feeding changes.
- If treatment or equipment is prescribed, ask for written instructions, a demonstration and a check of your skills; report gaps or concerns.
- Prepare a separate cot in the caregiver’s room: a firm, flat, well-fitting mattress and fitted sheet, with no loose items; place your baby on their back.
- Discuss handwashing, limiting contact with unwell people and a smoke-free home; share the agreed arrangements with visitors.
Share care and arrange support
- Give the plan to every adult caregiver; arrange backup and training suited to your baby’s needs.
- Record questions and changes to discuss; ask the team how to account for corrected age, without assessing development yourself from the checklist.
- Arrange help with meals, the home and siblings; plan rest for adults.
- Ask the team to repeat when to seek urgent advice and emergency help; do not put it off until a scheduled follow-up.
Questions to discuss with a professional
- Who coordinates care, and how can we get help out of hours?
- Which changes in feeding, behaviour or wellbeing need urgent assessment?
- How should we discuss development and corrected age in the individual plan?
Frequently asked questions
Does a completed checklist mean my baby can go home?
No. The team decides after an individual assessment. The checklist organises questions and agreed plans; it does not assess the baby’s readiness, home conditions or caregiver skills.
Can we copy another premature baby’s plan?
No. Feeding, follow-up, treatment and any equipment depend on your baby’s needs. Ask the team to explain your own plan and update it when difficulties arise.
Can a worrying symptom wait until follow-up?
No. Warning signs require immediate emergency help. Report other worrying changes without delay, following the plan. Filling in the card, weighing or checking a device must not delay help.
Private plans after discharge
Print and fill in by hand with the team. Record essential plans without confidential details on a shared copy. This card is not a medical document or proof of training.
- Date and version of the discharge plan
- Healthcare team and out-of-hours contacts
- Follow-up, documents and care coordinator
- Feeding: questions and appropriate contact
- Home sleep: arrangements agreed with the team
- Training advised by the team and matters needing clarification
- Caregivers, backup and support for the parent
- Urgent help and the next step to agree
Keep this card private and update it when advice changes. Do not post a photograph of it. Notes do not replace the discharge summary, instructions, training or urgent help.
How to use this checklist
Tick matters you have discussed or prepared, and add your own agreed plans. A tick does not confirm safety, health or completion of a medical procedure. Revisit the checklist when your family’s needs change.
Sources and updates
- Health Service Executive (HSE) - Coming home from a neonatal or special care unit
- Bliss - Preparing to go home
- Bliss - When you get home
- American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), HealthyChildren.org - How to Keep Your Sleeping Baby Safe: AAP Policy Explained
- NHS - Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
- NHS - When to get urgent medical help for babies and children under 5