ABSTRACT
The burden of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) appears to vary across units and countries. Evidence-based prevention strategies include prioritized human milk, especially mother's own milk, and the use of standardized feeding protocols. Clinical processes to reduce NEC risk occur over the care continuum and require a team to implement them consistently. Including parents as prevention partners, even before birth, could strengthen the team's efforts to leverage human milk and to watch out for warning signs. This chapter presents the results of quality improvement (QI) efforts across groups and key components they implemented. Implementation strategies are discussed and tools to implement QI are shared.
