When the SUCCEED Child Feeding Alliance approached Adam,Rouilly about using our Hungry Manikin Paediatric Nasogastric Feeding Trainer for a world-first tube feeding course, we were really happy to support their innovative approach to healthcare education.
More than a year later, the results speak for themselves – around 100 people across Australia have received vital nasogastric tube training, and the charity is now preparing for global expansion of its transformative programme.
Making tube feeding training accessible to all
What makes SUCCEED’s approach so effective is that the courses and materials were designed with families, rather than for them. This collaborative model ensures that the voices of parents, carers, and children are at the heart of the training development, creating truly inclusive healthcare education that meets real-world needs.
The two-hour practical workshops are for anyone who needs to learn how to safely use a nasogastric tube with a child, from healthcare professionals and childcare workers to friends and family. The Adam,Rouilly Hungry Manikin Paediatric Nasogastric Feeding Trainer is at the centre of this training, providing essential hands-on experience for building confidence in tube feeding techniques.
SUCCEED Co-founder Dr Chris Elliot explained: “We have now shared the SUCCEED tube feeding course with around 100 participants and have learned so much about our first version. It means we are ready to refine the whole course and materials ready to launch version two on a global scale. As always, the Hungry Manikins are at the heart of our practical teaching.”
Emily Whitebread, Director at Adam,Rouilly, said: “It’s truly inspiring and incredibly rewarding to see our Hungry Manikin being used in such a life-changing way. We’ve loved being kept up to date with the progress of SUCCEED and hearing about the difference they are making to so many children and families.
“This is a real example of how high-quality, authentic teaching aids can genuinely transform outcomes for people. Whether it’s healthcare professionals learning tube feeding skills, families gaining confidence in feeding their children, or more carers being able to join their support networks – they all serve to improve the care and quality of life of children with complex feeding needs.
“We look forward to seeing this being rolled out further.”
Impact beyond delivery
The programme has gained significant momentum this year, with recent workshops in Adelaide drawing over 30 clinicians from the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, local GPs and private practitioners. The charity is now planning additional workshops, including a Brisbane session scheduled for November.
SUCCEED’s impact extends beyond training delivery. Co-founder Anna Lerado has been nominated for a community hero award that could provide thousands of dollars towards the charity’s work if she wins. This recognition reflects the programme’s growing role in supporting tube-fed children and their families.
Anna wanted to bridge gaps in care provision after struggling with a lack of resources and support when tube feeding her own child.
As well as the practical workshops, SUCCEED has developed a suite of online resources, and created a community of families and carers who help and support each other. It is now working to get venues such as cafes and restaurants to sign up as ‘tube-feeding friendly’.
The goal is to create more inclusive mealtime experiences and environments, and ultimately to reduce the number of hospitalisations for tube-fed children.
Why inclusive healthcare education matters
SUCCEED’s collaborative approach is indicative of a shift in healthcare education to place greater emphasis on people and outcomes, recognising that effective simulation must include all voices in the development of training products and techniques.
By creating resources that are accessible to families dealing with complex feeding needs, SUCCEED helps reduce the isolation and anxiety often experienced by parents of tube-fed children, while building broader networks of capable carers.
Celebrating Children and Young People’s Nursing Conference
This theme of inclusion – listening to, involving, and working with children and families to shape healthcare – is a core focus of the Celebrating Children and Young people’s Nursing Conference Adam,Rouilly is attending this week at Northumbria University.
We’ll be showcasing The Hungry Manikin alongside other items from our comprehensive range of paediatric medical education solutions, demonstrating how simulation tools can support more inclusive approaches to children’s healthcare education.
The conference, running September 18-19, brings together children’s nursing professionals to explore challenges and innovations in paediatric care. Several sessions will focus specifically on caring for children with complex needs, including how healthcare professionals can support children and young people with specialised feeding requirements.
The role of realistic simulation in building confidence
The success of the SUCCEED programme highlights why realistic and anatomically correct training models are essential for effective tube feeding education. Our Hungry Manikin was specifically designed by nurses from Birmingham Children’s Hospital to address the limitations of previous training solutions that lacked sufficient realism or anatomical accuracy.
This level of realism plays a vital role in building the confidence needed to manage tube feeding safely in hospitals and care settings, but also in the home, where most feeding actually takes place. As SUCCEED’s work shows, collaborative training helps transform what can be a daunting medical procedure into a manageable part of family life.
You can read more about the tube feeding course and the Adam,Rouilly’s Hungry Manikin in our previous article.
For more information about our range of task trainers and simulators for tube feeding training in children or adults, please contact our Sales Team or talk to Kate and Ruban during the Celebrating Children and Young people’s Nursing Conference. We’re always happy to explore how our products can support your training needs.
