Effectiveness of the Close Collaboration with Parents intervention on parent-infant closeness in NICU.

Background: Parent-infant closeness during hospital care of newborns has many benefits for both infants and parents. We developed an educational intervention for neonatal staff, Close Collaboration with Parents, to increase parent-infant closeness during hospital care. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention on parent-infant closeness in nine hospitals in Finland.

The Development of Data Collection Tools to Measure Parent-Infant Closeness and Family-Centered Care in NICUs.

Background: Preterm and sick infants benefit from parent-infant closeness and family-centered care (FCC) in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Prospective and feasible tools are needed to measure these care practices to facilitate their implementation.

Aims: To describe the development process of three prospective data collection tools that measure parent-infant closeness and the quality of FCC.

Parents' presence and participation in medical rounds in 11 European neonatal units.

Background: Parents' involvement during hospital care is beneficial for preterm infants and their parents. Although parents are encouraged to be present in many neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), little is known about their role during medical rounds.

Aims: To study parents' presence in the NICU, the degree of parents' participation during medical rounds, and to identify underlying factors for participation.

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

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.

Trends in care practices reflecting parental involvement in neonatal care.

Background: Everyday care practices can facilitate or hinder parents' participation and involvement in neonatal care.

Aims: To evaluate trends in family-centered care practices in the Neonatal Intensive Care unit in Turku University Hospital.

Study Design And Subjects: In this retrospective study, the patient charts of very preterm infants were reviewed in 4 cohorts: 2001 to 2002 (n=72), 2006 to 2007 (n=69), 2009 to 2010 (n=76), and 2011 to 2012 (n=78).