The PREMTIME study - implications for early targeted surveillance of preterm infants

The Women’s and Children’s service at the Sunshine Coast University Hospital is applying choosing wisely principles and best evidence-based practice to provide targeted surveillance for the high-risk population of very preterm and very low birth weight infants. We have transformed a low value, high volume blanket follow-up pathway into a streamlined prioritised model of care focused on providing early detection of adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes and excellence in service delivery for our families impacted by preterm birth. Implementation of our results enables reduction in expensive time-consuming follow-up of infants with a high chance of a typical outcome, allowing targeted follow-up based on prognostic outcomes (very low, low, moderate and high risk of developmental delay).