Home enteral feeding

Abstract

Enteral nutrition is a well-established therapy for patients with a functioning gastrointestinal tract who require nutrition support due to inadequate or unsafe oral intake to treat or prevent malnutrition.1 Common indications for patients going home on enteral feeding include dysphagia due to neurological conditions, cancer, gastrointestinal obstruction or surgery and those with higher nutritional requirements (eg Cystic Fibrosis). Home Enteral Nutrition (HEN) provides patients with adequate and safe nutrition while allowing them to return to a familiar environment and for some, a degree of independence.2 HEN may be the sole source of nutrition for some patients, or be supplemental to diet for others. It may be given continuously via a pump or by boluses via a syringe, or a combination of both, during the day or overnight. Various enteral feeding tubes are available and are typically classified by site of insertion and location of the distal tip of the feeding tube. (See Table 1) The organisation of HEN usually occurs in the hospital setting and involves the dietitian, medical team, social worker, nursing staff and liaison with community personnel such as the Director of Public Health Nursing (DPHN), the public health nurse (PHN), the general practice and the community dietitian.