A package of measures aimed at boosting care for preterm babies and their families continues to deliver improvements five years after its introduction.
The Optimisation Care Bundle is a set of nine clinical interventions promoted by Health Innovation North West Coast and Health Innovation Manchester in the North West.
In the last year, 2,669 recommended interventions were delivered in the region to help preterm babies as part of the national Maternity and Neonatal Safety Improvement Programme (MatNeoSIP).
The North West health innovation networks work alongside the North West Neonatal Operational Delivery Network and maternity and neonatal units to promote the interventions.
There is strong evidence that babies who receive all nine interventions experience better outcomes. In 2025-2026, 777 babies in the North West were born to mothers less than 34 weeks pregnant, and 70 per cent of the perinatal optimisation care bundle recommended interventions were given – 2,669 – resulting in:
- 93 per cent of extremely premature babies were born at the correct level of unit
- 79 per cent of babies had an optimal temperature on admission to the neonatal unit, aiding early stabilisation
- 90 per cent of mothers who delivered babies before 30 weeks received magnesium sulphate, which reduces the risk of cerebral palsy
- 95 per cent of eligible babies received caffeine within the first two days of life, reducing the need for respiratory support
- 75 per cent of babies were given their mother’s milk within the first 48 hours of birth, helping to reduce infection and feeding-related illnesses
A week-long series of events at Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust were held to celebrate best practice, highlight successes and share experiences.
Dr Alex Cleator, Consultant Neonatologist at Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Five years on, the optimisation pathway is delivering real results.
“Our collaboration with MatNeoSIP and regional teams continues to drive innovation and quality improvement. This year’s Optimisation Week builds on our achievements, with a renewed focus on the antenatal period and sustaining the progress we’ve made for families across the North West.”
Caroline Finch, Programme Manager for the Patient Safety Collaborative at Health Innovation Manchester, added: “The success of this work is down to the collaborative approach we’ve been able to develop. The teams come together regularly to exchange ideas and share best practice for the benefit of mothers and babies.
“We’re looking forward to making even more improvements in the coming months.”
- The statistics in this news item are from the North West Neonatal Operational Delivery Network National Commissioning Data Repository dashboard, populated from neonatal Badgernet data, and were updated in July 2026.
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