Refereed journal article or data article (A1)

Parents ' presence and parent-infant closeness in 11 neonatal intensive care units in six European countries vary between and within the countries




List of AuthorsRaiskila S, Axelin A, Toome L, Caballero S, Tandberg BS, Montirosso R, Normann E, Hallberg B, Westrup B, Ewald U, Lehtonen L

PublisherWILEY

Publication year2017

JournalActa Paediatrica

Journal name in sourceACTA PAEDIATRICA

Journal acronymACTA PAEDIATR

Volume number106

Issue number6

Start page878

End page888

Number of pages11

ISSN0803-5253

eISSN1651-2227

DOIhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1111/apa.13798

URLhttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/apa.13798/full

Self-archived copy’s web addresshttps://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/27438349


Abstract
Aim: Little is known about the amount of physical parent-infant closeness in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), and this study explored that issue in six European countries.Methods: The parents of 328 preterm infants were recruited in 11 NICUs in Finland, Estonia, Sweden, Norway, Italy and Spain. They filled in daily diaries about how much time they spent in the NICU, in skin-to-skin contact (SSC) and holding their babies in the first two weeks of their hospitalisation.Results: The parents' NICU presence varied from a median of 3.3 (minimum 0.7-maximum 6.7) to 22.3 (18.7-24.0) hours per day (p < 0.001), SSC varied from 0.3 (0-1.4) to 6.6 (2.2-19.5) hours per day (p < 0.001) and holding varied from 0 (0-1.5) to 3.2 (0-7.4) hours per day (p < 0.001). Longer SSC was associated with singleton babies and more highly educated mothers. Holding the baby for longer was associated with gestational age. The most important factor supporting parent-infant closeness was the opportunity to stay overnight in the NICU. Having other children and the distance from home to the hospital had no impact on parent-infant closeness.Conclusion: Parents spent more time in NICUs if they could stay overnight, underlining the importance that these facilities play in establishing parent-infant closeness.

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Last updated on 2022-07-04 at 16:35