Curriculum standards
Curriculum standards
Advanced Training in General Paediatrics (Paediatrics & Child Health)
Knowledge guides
LG12: Neonatal and perinatal medicine
Key presentations and conditions
Advanced Trainees will have a comprehensive depth of knowledge of these presentations and conditions.
Less common or more complex presentations and conditions
Advanced Trainees will understand these presentations and conditions.
Advanced Trainees will understand the resources that should be used to help manage patients with these presentations and conditions.
Epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical sciences
Advanced Trainees will have a comprehensive depth of knowledge of the principles of the foundational sciences.
Investigations, procedures, and clinical assessment tools
Advanced Trainees will know the scientific foundation of each investigation and procedure, including relevant anatomy and physiology. They will be able to interpret the reported results of each investigation or procedure.
Advanced Trainees will know how to explain the investigation or procedure to patients, families, and carers, and be able to explain procedural risk and obtain informed consent where applicable.
Important specific issues
Advanced Trainees will identify important specialty-specific issues and the impact of these on diagnosis and management and integrate these into care.
Presentations
- Antenatally diagnosed conditions
- Billious vomiting
- Cardiac murmurs
- Collapsed neonate
- Cyanosis
- Dysmorphic features
- Floppy infant
- Hypoglycaemia
- Hypothermia
- Jaundice
- Large for gestational age
- Neonatal resuscitation
- Poor feeding
- Preterm neonates
- Respiratory distress
- Seizures
- Slow growth
- Small for gestational age
- Vomiting
Conditions
-
Air leak syndromes:
- pneumomediastinum
- pneumothorax
- Anaemia
- Apnoea
- Birth trauma:
- brachial plexus palsy
- cephalhaematoma
- clavicular fracture
- subgaleal haemorrhage
- Bronchopulmonary dysplasia
- Chronic lung disease
- Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract
- Congenital heart disease, including duct-dependent circulation
- Congenital malformations:
- cleft lip or palate
- digit / limb abnormalities
- Pierre Robin sequence
- sacral dimples
- single umbilical artery
- Congenital pneumonia
- Developmental dysplasia of the hips
- Electrolyte abnormalities
- Gastro-oesophegeal reflux
- Group B strep sepsis screening and management
- Head moulding
- Hypoglycaemia
- Hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy
- Infant of diabetic mother
- Intracranial or intraventricular haemorrhage
- Intrauterine growth restriction
- Meconium aspiration syndrome
- Meningitis and encephalitis
- Necrotising enterocolitis
- Neonatal abstinence syndrome
- Neonatal asphyxia
- Neonatal infection
- Nasolacrimal duct obstruction
- Persistent pulmonary
- Plagiocephaly hypertension
- Polycythemia
- Respiratory distress syndrome
- Retinopathy of prematurity
- Sepsis
- Shock
- Skin conditions
- Small for gestational age
- Transient tachypnoea of the newborn
For each presentation and condition, Advanced Trainees will know how to:
Synthesise
- recognise the clinical presentation
- identify relevant epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical science
- take a relevant clinical history
- conduct an appropriate examination
- establish a differential diagnosis
- plan and arrange appropriate investigation
- consider the impact of illness and disease on patients and families, and their quality of life
Manage
- provide evidence-based management
- for less common or more complex presentations and conditions the trainee must also seek expert opinions
- prescribe therapies tailored to patients’ needs and conditions
- recognise potential complications of disease and its management, and initiate preventative strategies
- involve multidisciplinary teams
Consider other factors
- identify individual and social factors and the impact of these on diagnosis and management
Conditions
- Ambiguous genitalia
- Choanal atresia
- Chromosomal and genetic conditions
- Congenital adrenal hyperplasia
- Congenital and perinatal infections
- Congenital brain abnormalities
- Congenital diaphragmatic hernia
- Congenital eye abnormalities
- Congenital lung abnormalities
- Congenital skin disorders, such as ichthyosis and epidermolysis
- Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC)
- Extreme prematurity
- G6PD deficiency
- Gastrointestinal emergencies
- Haematological conditions:
- acute bleeding disorders:
- lymphopenia
- neutropenia
- thrombocytopenia
- vitamin K-deficient bleeding
- haemolytic disease of the newborn
- acute bleeding disorders:
- Hereditary spherocytosis
- Herpes simplex virus – approach to infants at risk or with suspected infection
- Hyperthyrodism
- Hypothyroidism
- Larygneal lesions
- Metabolic disorders
- Neonatal encephalopathy
- Neural tube defect
- Perinatal stroke
- Periventricular leukomalacia
- Pulmonary interstitial emphysema
- Respiratory failure
- Stridor
- Supraventricular tachycardia
Surgical problems in the neonate
- Abdominal wall defects
- Atresia:
- anal
- duodenal
- oesophageal
- Hirschprung disease
- Hypospadias
- Inguinal hernia
- Intestinal malrotation, with or without volvulus
- Meconium ileus
- Trachea-oesophageal fistula
- Undescended testes
Synthesise
- recognise the clinical presentation
- identify relevant epidemiology, pathophysiology, and clinical science
- take a relevant clinical history
- conduct an appropriate examination
- establish a differential diagnosis
- plan and arrange appropriate investigation
- consider the impact of illness and disease on patients and families, and their quality of life
Manage
- provide evidence-based management
- for less common or more complex presentations and conditions the trainee must also seek expert opinions
- prescribe therapies tailored to patients’ needs and conditions
- recognise potential complications of disease and its management, and initiate preventative strategies
- involve multidisciplinary teams
Consider other factors
- identify individual and social factors and the impact of these on diagnosis and management
- Anatomy, neurodevelopment, and physiology aspects of feeding and gut maturation in term and pre-term infants
- Drug metabolism in the neonate and breastfeeding mother, and appropriate and safe prescribing
- Effects of intrauterine and perinatal events on outcome
- Pathophysiology of common and uncommon neonatal conditions
- Physiology of extra-uterine adaptation, including initiation of feeding, and changes to cardiac and respiratory physiology
Clinical assessment tools
- Neonatal growth charts (Fenton)
- Newborn hearing screening
- Postnatal assessment of gestestional age (Ballard / Dubowitz)
Investigations
-
Blood tests:
- bacterial and viral PCR
- biochemistry
- blood gas
- endocrinological
- genetic investigations
- haematological
- inflammatory markers
- metabolic screening tests
- microscopy:
- culture and antimicrobial sensitivity
- newborn screening
-
Cardiac studies:
- echocardiography
- electrocardiography (ECG)
- Electroencephalography (EEG)
-
Other pathology:
-
cerebral spinal fluid microscopy:
- culture and antimicrobial sensitivity
- swabs from sterile and non-sterile sites
-
urine microscopy:
- biochemistry
- culture and antimicrobial sensitivity
- metabolic screening
- viral PCR
-
cerebral spinal fluid microscopy:
-
Radiology:
- MRI
- plain x-rays
- ultrasound
- upper gastrointestinal contrast study
Procedures
-
Awareness of role of adjuncts to diagnostic assessment and procedures, such as:
- point of care ultrasound (POCUS)
- transcutaneous bilirubinometer
- transilluminator
-
Intramuscular injections:
- vaccinations
- vitamin K injection
- Intubation
- Lumbar puncture
- Needle thoracostomy and intercostal drain insertion
- Nasogastric (N-G) tube placement
-
Peripheral intravenous (IV) access, including knowledge of:
- mid lines
- peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC)
- Suprapubic aspirate
- Surfactant administration
- Transfusion of blood and blood products
- Umbilical venous and arterial catheterisation
- Urinary catheter insertion
- Administration of maternal medications such as magnesium sulfate, steroids, and tocolytics for prevention of premature birth, prevention of perinatal morbidity, and neuroprotection
-
Antenatally diagnosed conditions, such as:
- cerebral ventricular dilatation
- choroid plexus cysts
- congenital heart disease
- dilated kidney system
- Antenatal screening
- Breastfeeding difficulties and support
-
Congenital conditions associated with maternal conditions, such as:
- maternal infections
- maternal medical diseases
- maternal substance use / misuse
- teratogens
- Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and humidified high-flow oxygenation
- Developmental care for neonates
- Early intervention services
-
Extreme prematurity – decision making, along with obsteric collegues, regarding:
- immediate care of the neonate
- limits of viability
- managing labour
- Feeding difficulties
- Growth patterns in newborn period
- Immunisation of term and preterm infants
- Implications and considerations in the redirection of care and palliative care
- Implications of congenital abnormalities for continuation of pregnancy and method of delivery
- Implications of congenital abnormalities for development, physical, and psychological function during childhood and adolescence
- Implications of congenital abnormalities for genetic counselling
- Infant care, feeding, and sleep
- Infant caregiver relationship
- Local resources available to ensure monitoring of growth and development in the newborn
- Manual and mechanical ventilation, including bag mask and T-piece
- Multiple pregnancies and complications
- Neonatal fluid management, including intravenous fluid prescription
- Neonatal resuscitation
- Neurodevelopmental outcomes and follow-up
- Normal growth and development in neonates
- Normal neuro-developmental milestones in preterm infants
-
Nutritional requirements of term and preterm infants:
- enteral feeding and parenteral nutrition
- Parental counselling
- Perinatal epidemiology
- Postnatal depression
-
Preterm neonate complications, such as:
- anaemia
- chronic neonatal lung disease
- electrolyte disturbances
- intraventricular haemorrhage
- long-term neurodevelopmental disability
- metabolic bone disease
- necrotising enterocolitis and spontaneous intestinal perforation
- nosocomial infection
- patent ductus arteriosus
- retinopathy of prematurity
- Prevention of perinatal mortality and low birth weight
- Principles of stabilisation and management of neonate prior to and during transport
- Procedural pain management, including sucrose and non-pharmacological supports
- Risk factors for neonatal sepsis and neonatal sepsis calculators
- Transport and retrieval issues
- Transport and retrieval services
- Vitamin, probiotic, and mineral supplementation and fortification options in premature infants