Premie to Preschool: NICU Interventions for Therapists - 2/1/2025
Course Overview
Prematurity is a serious public health concern currently affecting 1 in 9 infants in the United States. Therapists serve a crucial role in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) interventions to assist parents in handling techniques, calming strategies, general developmental care and offer parent education, with a ubiquitous goal of promoting the best possible outcome. Given their strong educational foundation in neuro development and neonatal care, therapists are uniquely qualified to assume this role, but often may feel ill-equipped about venturing into such a high-risk setting. This 2-hour course is designed to ameliorate those concerns by offering a very thorough perspective of how to address all the multifaceted confounding factors in the NICU setting, from pain management to positioning. Therapists will gain a deeper understanding of the medical complexities and neurodevelopment care, as well as learn the interplay between nurture, nature, and the premature sensory system.
Learning Outcomes
Upon the completion of this course, the learner should be able to:
- Recognize the sensory / developmental differences in pre-term infants.
- Identify all 7 neuro-developmental care areas in the NICU.
- Locate at least 2 manage pain/stress strategies in the NICU.
- Recognize components of the Synactive Theory.
- Identify 5 common positioning strategies/ considerations in the NICU. Locate at least three evidence- based therapeutic interventions for NICU patients.
About the Author/Presenter
Dr. Aditi Mehra graduated with a Bachelors in Occupational Therapy, from Western Michigan University in 1998 and pursued her Doctorate in Health Sciences from Midwestern University in Illinois. She has practiced as a pediatric OT for that past 22yrs in various settings: Early Intervention, hand therapy, NICU, inpatient/outpatient rehabilitation, tele-therapy and school- settings. During her Doctoral Studies, Dr. Mehra also pursued a certification in Behavior Analysis to improve and enhance collaboration within multidisciplinary teams. Once she delved deeper into this field of Behavioral Psychology, Dr. Mehra uncovered Fit Learning, an academic program based on the principles of Precision Teaching designed to build fluency and address all differences in learning. Dr. Mehra is currently the director of 3 Fit Learning Labs: in Chicago, Denver and London - England. She continues to practice OT in the school setting and is an avid Continuing Education presenter for various Allied health groups. Dr. Mehra is also an Adjunct professor at Elmhurst University whose passion is rooted in Inter Professional Education and working with allied fields. She also has a Pediatric OT podcast designed to discuss the common behavioral challenges in Pediatric OT using a case study format.
Audience/Accreditations and Approvals
Colibri Healthcare
This course is designed for the following healthcare professions (select your profession for details):
Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy
If you require special accommodations, please contact Colibri Healthcare Support by clicking here: Contact Us
