ABSTRACT
Until comparatively recently in the UK, transfer was largely the responsibility of a locally organised ad hoc team who happened to be on duty but who commonly had inadequate training, resources and equipment (Krug 1995). Staff were not in an optimal position to manage the infant en route, nor to deal with emergencies such as physiological deterioration, loss of intravenous access or endotracheal tube misplacement (Kelly et al. 1996). By undertaking the transfer, staffing within the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) was depleted.
