Experiences of the Mothers of Infants Hospitalized in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (Nicu) Publisher Pubmed



Nazari R¹ ; Koosha FM² ; Rezaie S³ ; Akbari N⁴ ; Qolizadeh A⁵ ; Sabzi Z⁶
Source: Journal of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Published:2020

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The mother-newborn relationship is more important in neonates hospitalized in the NICU than in healthy neonates. This study was conducted to explore the experiences of the mothers of infants hospitalized in the NICU. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This qualitative study was done in 2016 by adopting a conventional content analysis approach. Thirty-five mothers in the NICUs, Imam Hossein Hospital and Fatemieh Hospital were selected. Their experiences were assessed using in-depth individual semi-structured interviews. Samplingwas purposive andwas continued until reaching data saturation. RESULTS: Two hundred and nine primary codes were extracted. After removing duplicates and overlaps, 95 primary codes were categorized in 8 subcategories, 2 accessory categories and 1 main category based on their appropriateness, agreement, and similarity. The accessory categories of mothers' worries and mothers' hopes were merged into a more general, abstract category named dual feelings about the baby. CONCLUSIONS: The nurses' awareness of the mothers' experiences can help design interventions to promote the quality of care for mothers and infants in the critical period of the NICU admission. © 2020 IOS Press. All rights reserved.