When we think of the NICU environment, we must first think of the newborn infant coping with health issues, a stressful and stimulating environment, and an unnatural separation from the mother and the father. In addition to attending to the infants medical need, its essential that we work towards alleviating the discomfort that the baby might feel by facilitating physical and emotional closeness between the baby and his or her parents. Bonds between parents and the infant are among the most enduring, fundamental aspects of human experience. Premature births, or any other health conditions that result in NICU hospitalization, can disrupt the natural attachment process. As nurses, we have the incredible opportunity to be the facilitators of bonding …show more content…
Its been a subject of hundreds of studies and its been supported by many different organization, including March of dimes, American academy of pediatrics, the world’s health organization…etc (Tessier, R., 2012) Kangaroo care has incredible benefits to newborns and especially preterm infants in the NICU. Infants who are mechanically ventilated appear to respond to kangaroo care particularly well with consistently high and stable oxygen saturation levels. (Cowan & Lilley, 2013). In addition to stable oxygen saturations, infants’ heart rate is more regular for infants held skin to skin. A number of studies have found that apnea and bradycardia were absent during kangaroo care. (Cowan & Lilley, 2013) Thermal synchrony is a very interesting area of benefit of kangaroo care. In a powerful care report published by Susan Ludington-Hoe, a mother was kangaroo caring her twins one on each side of her chest. The twins had different thermal needs, one infant had low temperature, and the other had an elevated temperature. Through kangaroo care, the mother warmed one infant and cooled the other to their normal temperature simultaneously. In fact, an infant and mother will warm each other to an appropriate temperature when either is too cold. (Ludington-Hoe, Lewis, Morgan, Cong, Anderson, & Reese, …show more content…
One theory on why this occurs is that the infant is kept warm already through the parent, so is able to conserve energy not expand it on trying to thermoregulate. (Samra, El Taweel, & Cadwell, 2013). Incredibly also, kangaroo care has proven successful on lowering the risks of nosocomial infection and improving survival rates of premature and low birth weight newborns (Samra, El Taweel, & Cadwell, 2013). Kangaroo care has a powerful impact on breastfeeding as well. It has been shown to increase breast milk, volume, its production, duration of breastfeeding, has doubled breastfeeding rate, and it has proven to decrease breastfeeding challenges (Flacking, Ewalds, Wallin,
Kangaroo care is the action of giving skin-to-skin contact with the parent. This is done by putting the baby in minimal clothing, usually just a diaper, and placing the baby skin-to-skin to the bare chest of the parent. There have always been positive effects to kangaroo care. Some of the positive effects of it are temperature regulation, respiration, and the stabilization of the baby’s heart rate. It is also found to help with bonding and helping with breastfeeding. When the parent performs kangaroo care, they hold the baby and are more confident when they leave the hospital. Kangaroo care is for most babies. Pre-term babies also have good results with kangaroo care.
Nurses play a big role in supporting the parents while their child is in the NICU. Showing compassion and demonstrating caring actions when caring for the patient makes it more likely that the parents will trust the nurse and the information the nurse gives them regarding their child’s condition. This trust is important as it helps the parents feel confident in the decisions they are making about their child’s care. When the parents of an ill child in the NICU have decided to terminate treatment palliative care by the nurse and other healthcare providers comes into play. Palliative care is keeping the child comfortable by treating the symptoms and being there for the parents and child physically, emotionally, and spiritually (Eden & Callister, 2010).
Neonatal nursing is a field of nursing designed especially for both newborns and infants up to 28 days old. The term neonatal comes from neo, "new", and natal, "pertaining to birth or origin”. Neonatal nurses are a vital part of the neonatal care team. These are trained professionals who concentrate on ensuring that the newborn infants under their care are able to survive whatever potential life threatening event they encounter. They treat infants that are born with a variety of life threatening issues that include instances of prematurity, congenital birth defects, surgery related problems, cardiac malformations, severe burns, or acute infection. Neonatal care in hospitals was always done by the nursing staff but it did not officially become a specialized medical field until well into 1960s. This was due to the numerous advancements in both medical care training and related technology that allowed for the improved treatment and survival rate of premature babies. According to the March of Dimes, one of every thirteen babies born in the United States annually suffers from low birth weight. This is a leading cause in 65% of infant deaths. Therefore, nurses play a very important role in providing round the clock care for these infants, those born with birth defects or other life threatening illness. In addition, these nurses also tend to healthy babies while their mothers recover from the birthing process. Prior to the advent of this specialized nursing field at risk newborn infants were mostly cared for by obstetricians and midwives who had limited resources to help them survive (Meeks 3).
At Cook Children’s Hospital, NICU parents are not only seen as the parents of the infants, but they also incorporate them as part of the team. Parents are highly encouraged to spend as much time as they possibly can with their premature infants, to have physical contact with them by giving them kangaroo time, which allows parents to have skin-to-skin contact with their infant, as soon as the infant reaches the stage in which he or she is a suitable candidate to be in physical contact with their parents. Siblings who are over 3 are allowed to visit their siblings at the NICU at specific times of the day, and child life specialists help siblings understand what is going on with their baby brother or sister who is in the NICU. If they have any specific questions, the child life specialist is there to assist them. Families are referred to other institutions that will be able to help them if their facilities aren’t able to fulfill their needs. One of the institutions that...
Kain, V. (2006). Palliative care delivery in the NICU: what barriers do neonatal nurses face?. Neonatal Network: NN, 25(6), 387-392.
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There are more than 70% of premature babies that are born between 34 and 36 weeks gestation a year. When a baby is born early, or born with birth defects, the Neonatal Intensive Care unit is its first home. The nurse’s in the NICU have the difficult job of preparing baby’s and parents for a health life together. A baby who has been put into the NICU will stay there until it is healthy enough to go home.
The societal taboo associated with death and dying is only worsened when death becomes imminent for an infant or child. Pediatric death and dying is a seldom discussed and often evaded topic in healthcare. This topic, although somber and challenging, is relevant for those nurses who encounter pediatric death and dying first hand. The following discussion will define death and dying in a pediatric population, identify the role of the bedside nurse in support of the dying child and parents of child, the bedside nurse’s role in an interdisciplinary team on a floor where death is a common occurrence, and promotion of nursing self-care to combat compassion fatigue and burnout.
Plecas, D., McCormick, A. V., Levine, J., Neal, P., & Cohen, I. M. (2011). Evidence-based
The next time I walked into a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit was as a fourth year medical student. This time not as a spectator, but as a medical professional expec...
This week’s clinical experience has been unlike any other. I went onto the unit knowing that I needed to be more independent and found myself to be both scared and intimidated. However, having the patients I did made my first mother baby clinical an exciting experience. I was able to create connections between what I saw on the unit and the theory we learned in lectures. In addition, I was able to see tricks other nurses on the unit have when providing care, and where others went wrong. Being aware of this enabled me to see the areas of mother baby nursing I understood and areas I need to further research to become a better nurse.
The Heartbeat: When the baby is developing in the womb, the most consistent and comforting aspect is that they are exposed to their mother’s heartbeat. This comfort carries on throughout most of our lives. As children and adults the sound of our heartbeat, our parents’ heartbeat, or our child’s heartbeat is comforting. Baby carriers allow infants to be close to their parents’ heartbeat.