Guidelines

Guidelines for Newborn Blood Spot Sampling

These guidelines aim to support healthcare professionals in obtaining good quality samples and reducing the need for repeat samples. Please refer to Guidelines for Newborn Blood Spot Sampling (January 2008) for the most up to date version.

Information on DNA screening for transfused babies is available from the NHS Sickle Cell & Thalassaemia Screening Programme.

Consultation - September 2011

The UKNSPC is currently reviewing these guidelines. A consultation with stakeholders on the proposed revisions was held from 23rd September to 24th October 2011. A response document detailing all comments received and the UKNSPC's response/action is now available. The revised guidelines will be published in early 2012 - further updates will be available on this page.

Thank you to everyone that responded to this consultation.

The Health Professionals Handbook

The Health Professionals Handbook (April 2005) has been produced by the Programme Centre’s Parent Support Research Team at the Institute of Education, University of London.

It is intended to support health professionals delivering newborn blood spot screening, outlining national standards and providing information for health
professionals to support them in answering parents’ queries.

It includes information about the conditions screened for as part of national programmes in the UK. It outlines the quality assurance standards developed by the UK Newborn Screening Programme Centre, with a specific focus on communication with parents and on the process of taking the blood spot sample.

Whilst it has been written for midwives, who are usually the ones to communicate with parents and collect blood spots from newborn babies, other health professionals who play a role in the screening process may find it helpful.

The Implementation and Reporting Guidance

The Implementation and Reporting Guidance (April 2005) is designed to support the implementation of the Policies and Standards for Newborn Blood Spot Screening across the UK.

The guidance aims to provide practical assistance for health professionals as they establish effective screening performance management groups to ensure that the core standards are being met and that an action plan, for continuous improvement, to enable the achievement of the developmental standards, is in place.