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What is Home Visits?

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Home visits (HV) are understood as continued healthcare for a preterm infant in their home, once the acute phase of the immediate neonatal period has passed, until they reach an appropriate weight for final discharge from hospital, approximately 2000 g.

Advantages of Home Visits

It has been shown that returning home as soon as possible, supported by home visits, decreases the risk of in-hospital infections, improves the emotional bond, favours breastfeeding, improves weight gain, increases the degree of satisfaction of the parents as well as their confidence in themselves, and helps get family life back to normal.

We have established certain requirements in order to initiate home visits. The patient must have a postmenstrual age of 33 weeks or greater, any acute medical problems must have been resolved, there has been an absence of apnoea for at least 5 days before discharge, they do not require medical treatment (except that which will be continued after their definitive discharge from hospital), they have achieved suitable thermoregulation, feed completely by sucking, and have gained sufficient weight.

Chronological age, postmenstrual age, and corrected age

Chronological age is the age counted from the day of birth, whatever the gestational age.

Postmenstrual age includes the weeks of life added to the weeks of gestation.

Corrected age is the age counted from the theoretical term of the pregnancy, in other words 40 weeks.

For example, a baby born at 28 weeks of gestation, at 98 days of life will have a chronological age of 3 months and 1 week, a postmenstrual age of 42 weeks, and a corrected age of 2 weeks.

Substantiated information by:

Ana Herranz Barbero Neonatologist Neonatology Department

Erika Sánchez Ortíz Nurse Neonatology Department

Maria Teresa Cobo Cobo Obstetrician Maternal–fetal Medicine Department

Marta Arnal Ahulló Nurse Neonatology Department

Mª Dolors Salvia Roiges Neonatologist Neonatology Department

Published: 20 February 2018
Updated: 20 February 2018

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