The 'Neonatal Critical Care Transport' Special Interest Group

Welcome to the 'Neonatal Critical Care Transport' Special Interest Group of the European Society for Paediatric Research (ESPR)

Neonatal transport is a crucial part of neonatal care and has developed into a highly specialised element of intensive care. Research and quality improvement (QI) are essential components of neonatal critical care transport required to continually advance the care we deliver and improve outcomes. We do not do this in silos and often we work collaboratively across paediatric and adult critical care transport as we share similar gaps in our knowledge and understanding of optimal patient transfer. This SIG aims to bring together all transport researchers, healthcare professionals, parents and other key stakeholders to develop new research goals to improve the transport of critically ill babies and children.

• Our objectives

  The overal aims of the Neonatal Critical Care Transport SIG are:

  • Support a network of ESPR members, researchers, key stakeholders and industry work collaboratively to plan and deliver research in this domain;
  • Create a research ecosystem that nurtures early career researchers and established ones to provide a platform to discuss, develop and disseminate transport research;
  • Ensure engagement with other specialist areas and SIGs to share ideas, build collaborations and foster crosspollination of learning;
  • Co-develop ideas with parents ensuring they and their baby is at the heart of the research we deliver.
• Meet the SIG Chair & members

  Don Sharkey MD, PhD Neo. Critical Care Transport SIG Chair University of Nottingham United Kingdom

  Cath Harrison MD Neo. Critical Care Transport SIG (Co-) Chair Embrace Transport Service United Kingdom

  Jonathan Davis MD Neo. Critical Care Transport SIG Secretary University of Western Australia Australia
• Upcoming projects & meetings of the SIG
  • Annual face to face business meeting and social event at JENS and EAPS conferences;
  • Planning and brainstorming meeting with ECRs and other stakeholders;
  • Partnering with national neonatal transport groups.
• Recent publications of interest
  • Noise exposure exceeded safe limits during neonatal care and road transport but was reduced by active noise cancelling. Aminudin N, Franta J, Bowden A, et al. Acta Paediatr. 2023;112(10):2060-2065. doi:10.1111/apa.16900
  • Tracking national neonatal transport activity and metrics using the UK Neonatal Transport Group dataset 2012-2021: a narrative review. Leslie A, Harrison C, Jackson A, et al. Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed. 2024 Jan 25 doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2023-325532
  • Quality indicators in interhospital transport: multicentre project. Garrido Conde B , Millán García del Real N , Escaplés Giménez T , et al. Anales de Pediatría (English Edition) 2021;95:167–73. doi:10.1016/j.anpede.2020.09.009
  • Understanding improved neonatal ventilation trends in a regional transport service. Dockery M, Harrison C. Acta Paediatr. 2023 Dec 29. doi: 10.1111/apa.17065.
  • Neonatal Transport Safety Metrics and Adverse Event Reporting: A Systematic Review. Gray M, Riley T, Greene N, et al. Air Med Journal 42(4):283-295.
  • Unintended events in long-distance neonatal interhospital transport in Western Australia: A comparison of neonatal specialist and non-neonatal specialist transport teams. Gardiner J, McDonald K, Blacker J, et al. medRxiv, doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.09.26.23296136
• How to engage with us

  Please contact the ESPR Secretariat via office@espr.eu. We will be more than happy to forward your request to the members of the Neonatal Critical Care Transport SIG.