Stress experienced by mothers of preterm newborns in a neonatal intensive care unit.

Objective: To evaluate the stress level of mothers of preterm infants with gestational age ≤34 weeks, hospitalized in neonatal intensive care.

Method: A cross-sectional study with 74 mothers of premature infants in neonatal intensive care, who answered the "Parental Stress Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit" instrument, validated in Brazil.

Results: The mean stress level was 4.

[Virtual environment forum in trust relationship between the heath professional and the person being cared for].

The goal was to develop a trusting relationship between the health professional and the person being care for in the construction of health practices through a course through a forum tool in a virtual environment. Outlining descriptive exploratory qualitative approach conducted in 2011. There were 19 employees, who participated of Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, who posted their speeches at forums during a distance learning course in a virtual learning environment (VLE) on the theme control and prevention of musculoskeletal pain.

[Maintenance of lactation: a challenge for hospitalized premature infant's mothers].

Preterm birth is a difficult situation for all family members, interfering with the establishment of parental bonding and attachment with the baby. This paper is a qualitative and collective case study, carried out with the purpose of identifying the perception of mothers concerning the maintenance of lactation during the hospital stay of premature infants at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (Clinic Hospital of Porto Alegre), Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The data were collected from March to April/2006 through interviews and observations and resulted in four categories.

[Nursing procedure: a dimension of the communication with the newborn].

This article approaches the perceptions of the nursing staff about the procedure's role in communicating with the newborn. Such theme was identified in a qualitative, exploratory/descriptive study developed with the nursing staff of the neonatal unit of an University Hospital in Porto Alegre/RS. The article explores the procedure's implications to the caregiver and methodological aspects of the study.

[Skin care in newborns].

This article is based on brief recent revision of the scientific literature about the care with the skin of the newborn. The text deals with the anatomo-physiology aspects of the skin culminating with the specific care of the skin of newborn in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Considering the highest risk of the pre-term newborn to acquire infections, a special nursing care is proposed regarding the skin function as a protective barrier of the organism.