title: Predictors of Health Status in Mothers of Premature Infants with Implications for Clinical Practice and Future Research.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Postpartum health research has focused primarily on full-term mothers.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To explore postpartum stress, depression, social support, health status, and predictors of health status in mothers of premature infants.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study employed a cross-sectional design. With convenience sampling, a total of 203 mothers of premature infants were recruited from two medical centers and four community teaching hospitals in southern Taiwan. The Hung Postpartum Stress Scale, Social Support Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, and Chinese Health Questionnaire were used to assess the mothers' psychosocial features during the first 6 weeks postpartum.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mothers' health status differed significantly according to levels of postpartum stress and depression. The important health status predictors were age, education, postpartum stress, and depression level.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The concerns and needs of mothers of premature infants differed from those of full-term mothers during the first 6 weeks postpartum; premature infants' health status was found to be a major perceived stressor for their mothers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the process of caring for premature infants' mothers, healthcare providers should provide individualized care to meet their needs, thus facilitating the reduction of postpartum stress and depression levels. During premature infants' hospitalizations, healthcare providers should hold regular faculty meetings to provide postpartum women with relevant information about their infants' health and how to best care for them. Future studies should explore postpartum stress, social support, depression, and health status each postpartum week, which could serve as a guide for nursing interventions.
authors.affiliation: Jian Ping Internal/Pediatric Clinic, Tainan, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chia-Yao
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chich-Hsiu
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Hung
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ying-Ju
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Chang
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D000068097:Maternal Health; D011247:Pregnancy; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013624:Taiwan
keywords: depression; health status; mothers of premature infants; postpartum stress