Equipment & Training

The healthcare professional team (and/or the nurse of the tube feeding company) will train you in hospital and/or at home. You should be given plenty of time to practice before leaving the hospital and going home. The nurses may use a special form to help guide training you. This form is then filled out at the end of the training to make sure you are happy with all aspects of feeding and caring for the feeding tube.

If you are a parent of a child who is tube feeding, Cameron Camel's story can help explain to your child what a feeding pump is. You can download the booklet here.

The tube feeding pump and feeding pump frame will be given to you on a long term loan by the tube feeding company when you or the one you care for are leaving the hospital. To keep the pump in good working order, make sure you follow the instruction guide. You will have the opportunity to go through any questions with the nurses before going home. Most instruction guides also have troubleshooting information if a malfunction or an alarm is being activated.

When leaving the hospital, you or the one you care for get enough giving sets, syringes and accessories, if required, that may last up to 7-days. The amount may differ in your location, but will cover what you need until the first home delivery arrives at your house or you collect it from the local district nurse/pharmacist. Always make sure you keep a 7-day buffer of everything you need, and contact the tube feeding company or local district nurse/pharmacist early enough to reorder to make sure you don't run out.

Typically, you will receive enough tube feeds for up to 7-days by the hospital/healthcare team when you or the one you care for are leaving the hospital. You'll be given a prescription for the tube feeds, which can be sent to the pharmacist of the tube feeding company, or given to your local pharmacy. It's important to remember to renew your prescription for your tube feed to make sure you don't run out.