NeoScore: a new tool to assess technical and non-technical skills during neonatal resuscitation

Background: Training with high-technology manikins improves cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skill retention, but a checklist to assess both technical and non-technical skills is lacking. This study aimed to develop a standardized checklist to evaluate healthcare’s performance during simulated Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP) scenarios. Materials and methods: Twenty-two international neonatal resuscitation experts participated in a two-step modified Delphi process, rating each checklist item on a scale of 1–5 and providing feedback. Items with a mean rating below 4 or receiving comments were reviewed. Inter-rater reliability (IRR) of the final tool was assessed using video-recordings of simulated scenarios. Results: The final checklist, validated by 15 experts, includes 33 items. Mean expert rating of all items was 4.35. The checklist showed moderate inter-rater reliability (ICC = 0.67) overall, with excellent reliability (ICC = 0.8) for technical skills. Conclusion: The tool effectively evaluates technical skills but requires further refinement for non-technical skills assessment.