The Impact of Structured Kangaroo Care Education on Premature Infants’ Weight Gain, Breastfeeding and Length of Hospitalization in Malaysia

Abstract

Sharmiza Samsudin,1,2 Ping Lei Chui,1 Azanna Ahmad Kamar,3 Khatijah Lim Abdullah,4,5 Chye Wah Yu,2 Zainah Mohamed5 1Department of Nursing Science, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; 2Faculty of Allied Health Professions, AIMST University, Bedong, Malaysia; 3Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; 4Department of Nursing, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia; 5Department of Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, MalaysiaCorrespondence: Ping Lei Chui, Department of Nursing Science, Faculty of Medicine, University Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, 50603, Malaysia, Tel [phone], Email [email protected]: Kangaroo care is a complementary humanistic intervention based on a family-centered care model. This study investigated the effects of a locally contextualized, structured kangaroo care education program on weight gain, breastfeeding rate and length of hospitalization for premature infants.Patients and Methods: This longitudinal quasi-experimental study with pre- and post-intervention design involved 96 infants born between 28 and 37 weeks of gestation for three months, and was carried out at a neonatal intensive care unit in Malaysia. The experimental group received a structured education program and careful monitoring of their kangaroo care practices, while the control group received routine care without a structured education program. The institutional review board approved the study design and registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04926402).Results: The kangaroo care hours performed by mothers at baseline in the experimental and control group was 4.12 and 0.55 hours per week, respectively. At three months post-discharge, the experimental group had significantly higher weight gain, higher breastfeeding rates and shorter lengths of hospitalization than the control group.Conclusion: A locally contextualized and structured kangaroo care education program is effective in the performance of kangaroo care. One hour per day of kangaroo care is positively associated with an extended period of breastfeeding, improved weight gain and shorter hospitalization of premature infants.Keywords: premature infant, structured program, kangaroo mother care, length of hospital stay, body weight, breastfeeding

Keywords

• premature infant
• structured program
• kangaroo mother care
• length of hospital stay
• body weight
• breastfeeding.