Feeding & Swallowing

HEFT Clinic

The Home Enteral Feeding Transitions (HEFT) Clinic at Primary Children's Hospital is specifically designed for former NICU patients discharged to home with a feeding tube (nasogastric, NG, or gastrostomy tube, GT) for supplemental nutrition and/or on thickened feeds.

The goal of the clinic is to bridge your baby’s care from NICU to home as they gain the strength and development to transition to full oral feeds. The HEFT clinic brings together an interdisciplinary team to offer a comprehensive evaluation of your child’s feeding problems.

Data from this clinic has shown that greater than 50% of infants will be free of tube feeds within 90 days after discharge.

Clinic Requirements

To qualify as a patient for the HEFT clinic, patients must be a recently-discharged NICU patient from Primary Children's Hospital, Intermountain Medical Center, or University of Utah Hospital who are able to partially eat by mouth. At this time, our patients are internally referred by these NICUs upon discharge.

**If your child was discharged from another area NICU that we do not have a partnership with, your child can still make an appointment with the Pediatric Nutrition Center clinics by calling (801) 213-3599.

Our Model

Because each baby’s feeding and tube weaning needs are different, we use an interdisciplinary evaluation process to aid in your baby’s success.  Your child will have a full assessment by a pediatric/neonatal feeding therapist, a pediatric dietician, and a pediatric gastroenterologist or nurse practitioner.

This interdisciplinary team will work to coordinate diagnostic study plans or therapy plans if needed. We also help your pediatrician and home care teams with prescriptions, referrals, and home health needs.

Referrals

Referrals are made ONLY by neonatology providers from the following newborn intensive care units:

  • Primary Children's Hospital NICU
  • University of Utah Hospital NICU
  • Intermountain Medical Center NICU

Contact Us

Please call us to ask questions or to schedule an appointment after you have been appropriately referred.

Our Team

Our team consists of a pediatric gastroenterologist, pediatric psychologist, nurse practitioner, speech therapist, and dietitian.