IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/jocnur/v28y2019i15-16p2979-2989.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Facilitating closeness between babies with congenital abnormalities and their parents in the NICU: A qualitative study of neonatal nurses' experiences

Author

Listed:
  • Hannah Skelton
  • Hannah G. Dahlen
  • Kim Psaila
  • Virginia Schmied

Abstract

Aims and objectives This qualitative study explored the experiences of neonatal nurses with facilitating closeness between parents and babies with congenital abnormalities in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Background Babies with congenital abnormalities often require admission to the neonatal intensive care unit. Parents may experience emotional distancing from their baby, due to their response to their baby's congenital abnormality, as well as physical separation due to their baby's hospitalisation in the NICU. NICU nurses can help facilitate the development of closeness between babies and parents in the NICU. Method This qualitative interpretive description study involved face‐to‐face, semi‐structured interviews with twelve neonatal nurses following which the data collected were thematically analysed. The consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ) checklist were used in preparing this paper. Results Three major themes emerged from the analysis—“Everyone copes differently,” “You have to focus on what is the normal thing” and “It's very much an individualised approach.” Participants often felt unprepared to care for babies with congenital abnormalities and implemented coping mechanisms to overcome the emotional labour they experienced. Skin‐to‐skin cuddles were considered the most beneficial strategy for parents to develop closeness with their baby. Participants recognised that they sometimes “pushed” parents into engaging with their baby. Participants highlighted the importance of individualised, supportive care for these parents. Conclusions Neonatal nurses require increased education about congenital abnormalities and individualised care to support them in caring for babies with congenital abnormalities. Relevance to clinical practice Further research is needed on parental experience of developing closeness with a baby with a congenital abnormality in the NICU.

Suggested Citation

  • Hannah Skelton & Hannah G. Dahlen & Kim Psaila & Virginia Schmied, 2019. "Facilitating closeness between babies with congenital abnormalities and their parents in the NICU: A qualitative study of neonatal nurses' experiences," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(15-16), pages 2979-2989, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:jocnur:v:28:y:2019:i:15-16:p:2979-2989
    DOI: 10.1111/jocn.14894
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.14894
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/jocn.14894?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Melanie Turner & Anna Chur‐Hansen & Helen Winefield, 2014. "The neonatal nurses' view of their role in emotional support of parents and its complexities," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 23(21-22), pages 3156-3165, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Anne Brødsgaard & Jette Thise Pedersen & Palle Larsen & Janne Weis, 2019. "Parents' and nurses' experiences of partnership in neonatal intensive care units: A qualitative review and meta‐synthesis," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(17-18), pages 3117-3139, September.
    2. Nina Margrethe Kynoe & Drude Fugelseth & Ingrid Hanssen, 2020. "When a common language is missing: Nurse–mother communication in the NICU. A qualitative study," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(13-14), pages 2221-2230, July.
    3. Julia Petty & Joy Jarvis & Rebecca Thomas, 2019. "Understanding parents’ emotional experiences for neonatal education: A narrative, interpretive approach," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(9-10), pages 1911-1924, May.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:jocnur:v:28:y:2019:i:15-16:p:2979-2989. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://doi.org/10.1111/(ISSN)1365-2702 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.