Parental Autonomy in the Care of Premature Newborns and the Experience of a Neonatal Team: Observational Prospective Study

Abstract

Abstract BackgroundThe European Foundation for the Care of Newborn Infants (EFCNI) has promoted the importance of parental involvement in the care of children. ObjectiveThe study aimed to examine how the time required by parents to achieve autonomy in the care of their very low–birth weight newborn infants was modified during the implementation of a training program. MethodsThis was an observational prospective study in the context of a quality improvement initiative. The Cuídame (meaning “Take Care of Me” in English) program was aimed at achieving parental autonomy. It was implemented over 2 periods: period 1, from September 1, 2020, to June 15, 2021; and period 2, from July 15, 2021, to May 31, 2022. The days required by parents to achieve autonomy in several areas of care were collected from the electronic health system. ResultsA total of 54 and 43 families with newborn infants were recruited in periods 1 and 2, respectively. Less time was required to acheive autonomy in period 2 for participation in clinical rounds (median 10.5, IQR 5‐20 vs 7, IQR 4‐10.5 d; PPPPPP ConclusionsParents required less time to achieve autonomy for participation in clinical rounds, feeding, and observation of neurobehavior during the implementation of the training program. Nevertheless, they required more time to achieve autonomy for kangaroo mother care, diaper change, and infection prevention.