Needs of parents in a surgical neonatal intensive care unit

Priya Govindaswamy, Sharon Laing, Donna Waters, Karen Walker, Kaye Spence, Nadia Badawi

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Aim: While there is evidence of parental needs in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), parents of newborns admitted for general surgery are an under‐researched population. This study aimed to identify needs in parents of newborns admitted to the NICU for general surgery and whether health‐care professionals meet these needs. Methods: This was a prospective cohort study of 111 parents (57% mothers) of newborns admitted to a surgical NICU for general surgery in Australia from January 2014 to September 2015. Parents completed the Neonatal Family Needs Inventory (NFNI), comprising 56 items in five subscales (Support, Comfort, Information, Proximity, Assurance) at admission and discharge, as well as the Social Desirability Scale (SDS). Data were analysed using parametric and non‐parametric techniques. Results: At both admission and discharge, parents rated Assurance (M = 3.8, standard deviation (SD) = 0.24) needs as the most important, followed by Proximity (M = 3.6, SD = 0.32) and Information (M = 3.5, SD = 0.38). Mothers rated Assurance significantly more important than fathers (P < 0.02). Overall, parents' most important needs were having questions answered honestly (M = 3.96, SD = 0.19), seeing their infant frequently and knowing about the medical treatment (both M = 3.95, SD = 0.23). The 10 most important needs were met for more than 96% of parents, with no evidence of response bias. Conclusions: Reassurance is a priority need for parents in the surgical NICU. Mothers' and fathers' needs may be best met by practices based on family‐centred, individualised care principles.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)567-573
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Paediatrics and Child Health
Volume55
Issue number5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2019

Keywords

  • infants
  • neonatal intensive care
  • newborn infants
  • parents
  • surgery

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