Parent-to-parent support initiated in the neonatal intensive care unit.
A preliminary quasi-experimental, longitudinal study was conducted to explore differences in maternal mood states, self-esteem, family functioning, maternal-infant interaction, and home environment between mothers of preterm infants who participated in a nurse-managed program of parent-to-parent support and those who served as a comparison group. Mothers who participated in the intervention scored significantly higher on the Barnard NCATS interaction measure and the HOME total scale and subscales of maternal responsiveness and organization (N = 58) at 12 months following discharge from a neonatal intensive care unit. Using repeated measures analysis for a subset of mothers (n = 32), there were significant differences between the two groups on the mood state anxiety-tension (POMS) during the first 4 months postdischarge, with the treatment group having less anxiety. There was also a group by time interaction effect on self-esteem during the first 4 months, with self-esteem of the treatment group mothers increasing and comparison mothers decreasing. Findings suggest that one-to-one veteran parent support, in a nurse-managed program, may influence maternal and maternal-infant interaction outcomes.
Roman
L A
LA
College of Nursing, Michigan State University, USA.
Lindsay
J K
JK
Boger
R P
RP
DeWys
M
M
Beaumont
E J
EJ
Jones
A S
AS
Haas
B
B
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D015931:Intensive Care, Neonatal / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D015146:Midwestern United States; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors