Practice recommendations regarding parental presence in NICUs during pandemics caused by respiratory pathogens like COVID-19

• Main Authors: Marsha Campbell-Yeo (Author), Fabiana Bacchini (Author), Lynsey Alcock (Author), Souvik Mitra (Author), Morgan MacNeil (Author), Amy Mireault (Author), Marc Beltempo (Author), Tanya Bishop (Author), Douglas M. Campbell (Author), Addie Chilcott (Author), Jeannette L. Comeau (Author), Justine Dol (Author), Amy Grant (Author), Jonathon Gubbay (Author), Brianna Hughes (Author), Amos Hundert (Author), Darlene Inglis (Author), Alanna Lakoff (Author), Yasmin Lalani (Author), Thuy Mai Luu (Author), Jenna Morton (Author), Michael Narvey (Author), Karel O'Brien (Author), Paula Robeson (Author), Michelle Science (Author), Prakesh Shah (Author), Leah Whitehead (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A., 2024-06-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.

Summary

AimTo co-create parental presence practice recommendations across Canadian NICUs during pandemics caused by respiratory pathogens such as COVID-19.MethodsRecommendations were developed through evidence, context, Delphi and Values and Preferences methods. For Delphi 1 and 2, participants rated 50 items and 20 items respectively on a scale from 1 (very low importance) to 5 (very high). To determine consensus, evidence and context of benefits and harms were presented and discussed within the Values and Preference framework for the top-ranked items. An agreement of 80% or more was deemed consensus.ResultsAfter two Delphi rounds (n = 59 participants), 13 recommendations with the highest rated importance were identified. Consensus recommendations included 6 strong recommendations (parents as essential caregivers, providing skin-to-skin contact, direct or mothers' own expressed milk feeding, attending medical rounds, mental health and psychosocial services access, and inclusion of parent partners in pandemic response planning) and 7 conditional recommendations (providing hands-on care tasks, providing touch, two parents present at the same time, food and drink access, use of communication devices, and in-person access to medical rounds and mental health and psychosocial services).ConclusionThese recommendations can guide institutions in developing strategies for parental presence during pandemics caused by respiratory pathogens like COVID-19

Item Description

2296-2360
10.3389/fped.2024.1390209