title: Parent-to-parent support initiated in the neonatal intensive care unit.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: College of Nursing, Michigan State University, USA.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Roman
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Lindsay
authors.forename: R P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Boger
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: DeWys
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Beaumont
authors.forename: A S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Haas
mesh_terms: 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