Incidence of Nasogastric and Gastrostomy Tube at Discharge Is Reduced after Implementing an Oral Feeding Protocol in Premature (< 30 weeks) Infants.

 Reduce the number of infants requiring home tube feeds by initiating an oral feeding protocol (OFP).  All infants < 30 weeks' gestation were eligible. The OFP involved four steps: encourage non-nutritive suck before 30 weeks, oral motor exercises starting as early as 30 weeks, swallowing exercises as early as 31 weeks, and an infant-driven oral feeding pathway as early as 32 weeks.