Restriction of visits to neonatal intensive care units in the COVID-19 pandemic.

AIMS: The aim of this study, it examine how visits to neonatal intensive care units were made during the COVID-19 process and how mothers were affected by this process. METHODS: In this phenomenological study, interviews were conducted with semi-structured questions and face-to-face interviews with the participants. While collecting the data, both observation and interview techniques were used. A content analysis technique was used to analyse the data. RESULTS: The findings of the study were gathered under two themes: 'mothers' recommendations about visits in neonatal intensive care units' and 'mothers' fear of transmitting COVID-19'. CONCLUSION: As a result, visitor restrictions implemented during the pandemic period hurt on newborns. During the pandemic period, visitor restrictions were imposed in neonatal intensive care units around the world. Unfortunately, in our study, it was determined that this restriction was made. This situation may have adversely affected the mother-infant attachment and the growth and development of the baby and may have led to irreversible problems. Therefore, newborn nurses should give more importance to mother-infant interaction and continue their treatment and care without separating infants from their mothers.

Psychometric Testing of the Newborn Skin Assessment Attitude Scale in Neonatal ICU Nurses.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a Newborn Skin Assessment Attitude Scale (NSAAS) for neonatal ICU (NICU) RNs. METHODS: The study was conducted with 326 nurses working in NICUs in three cities in Turkey. The researchers evaluated the content and construct validity and reliability of the scale with item-total score correlation analysis, the test-retest method, and calculating the Cronbach α reliability coefficient. RESULTS: The content validity index of the scale ranged between 0.87 and 1.00. Prior to exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin coefficient of the NSAAS was 0.976, and the Bartlett test of sphericity result was χ2 = 15,337.052 (P < .001). The scale was constructed with 35 items with factor loads greater than 0.40 and three subdimensions. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the fit indices of the NSAAS were χ2/df = 3.57, root mean square error of approximation = 0.08, normed fit index = 0.98, non-normed fit index = 0.98, comparative fit index = 0.98, and standardized root mean square residual = 0.05. The overall reliability coefficient of the NSAAS was α = .978. The test-retest coefficients of correlation were r = 0.558 for the overall scale and r = 0.615, r = 0.504, and r = 0.598 for the Awareness, Practice, and Avoidance subdimensions, respectively. In addition, no statistically significant difference was observed when comparing the test-retest mean scores for the total scale and the subdimensions (P > .05). CONCLUSIONS: The NSAAS can be reliably used for measuring NICU nurses' attitudes toward newborn skin assessment.

Effect of the Premature Infant Oral Motor Intervention on Sucking Capacity in Preterm Infants in Turkey: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Preterm infants have oral feeding difficulty that often delays discharge, indicating a need for evidence-based interventions for oral-motor development. PURPOSE: To test the Premature Infant Oral Motor Intervention (PIOMI) on the development of oral-motor function, feeding, and anthropometric outcomes using sucking manometry. METHODS: A single-blind randomized experimental design was conducted with a sample of 60 preterm infants from 2 neonatal intensive care units between May 2019 and March 2020. The experimental group received PIOMI for 5 min/d for 14 consecutive days. Sucking capacity, anthropometrics (weight and head circumference), bottle feeding, breast/chest feeding initiation, and length of hospital stay were measured. The Yakut Sucking Manometer (PCT/TR2019/050678) was developed specifically for this study and tested for the first time. RESULTS: The experimental group had a statistically significant percent increase over controls in sucking power (69%), continuous sucking before releasing the bottle (16%), sucking time (13%), and sucking amount (12%) with partial η 2 values of interaction between the groups of 0.692, 0.164, 0.136, and 0.121, respectively. The experimental group had a higher increase in weight (89%) and head circumference (81%) over controls ( F = 485.130, P < .001; F = 254.754, P < .001, respectively). The experimental group transitioned to oral feeding 9.9 days earlier than controls ( t = -2.822; P = .007), started breast/chest feeding 10.8 days earlier ( t = 3.016; P = .004), and were discharged 3.0 days earlier. IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH/PRACTICE: The PIOMI had a significant positive effect on anthropometrics, sucking capacity, readiness to initiate bottle and breast/chest feeding, and a 3-day reduction in length of hospital stay.

The relationship between mode of delivery and postpartum depression.

PURPOSE: Postpartum period is a critical interval in which the woman is under risk for psychiatric disorders including postpartum depression (PD). This study was performed to investigate the impact of the mode of delivery on the occurrence of PD in primiparous mothers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This correlational study was performed on 244 primiparous women (aged 15-49 years) in 17 primary health-care centers. Sociodemographic, obstetric, and PD-related data were gathered using questionnaires and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) on the 1st and 3rd months after delivery. The questionnaires were administered to all primiparous mothers who were registered to the relevant health-care center. Questionnaires were administered by the researcher for 25-30 min with face-to-face interview technique. RESULTS: Comparison of EPDS scores on the 1st and 3rd months indicated that there was a remarkable decline over time (Z = 11.112, P = 0.001). There was an inverse association between educational level and EPDS scores on the 3rd month (P = 0.037). On the other hand, no significant relationship was detected between age groups, occupation, income, place of accommodation, and EPDS scores. Evaluation of the relationship between obstetric features and EPDS scores revealed that desired and performed modes of delivery, induction, episiotomy, and spinal anesthesia were not linked with EPDS scores. The postpartum behavior (χ 2 = 10.315; P = 0.035) and feeding method of infants (χ 2 = 6.109; P = 0.013) were associated with EPDS scores on the 1st month, but not with EPDS scores on the 3rd month. CONCLUSION: Effective measures must be established for early recognition of factors affecting the occurrence of PD. Health planners and policymakers must spend their efforts for promotion of the knowledge and attitudes of mothers during pregnancy. Identification of factors for PD necessitates implementation of multicentric, controlled trials on larger series.

Does warming the breasts affect the amount of breastmilk production?

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Increasing the amount of breastmilk is vital for both the nursing mother and child. Warming up breasts before using electrical pumps to pump out breastmilk may help to increase the amount of breastmilk, especially in the mothers of babies who are being nursed in the neonatal intensive care unit. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Thirty-nine mothers whose babies had been admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit were analyzed. A breast compress that was warmed up in a microwave oven for 1 minute at 180 W was applied to one of the breasts for 20 minutes, and both breasts were sucked by an electrical breast pump for 15 minutes. The amount of breastmilk after each procedure was recorded. RESULTS: The amount of breastmilk that was obtained from warmed breasts was significantly higher than that obtained from nonwarmed breasts (maximum, 47.02 ± 23.01 mL vs. 33.15 ± 19.98 mL) (p=0.000). CONCLUSION: Warming up breasts by a breast compress is easy and affordable, and this procedure increases the amount of breastmilk, thus facilitating infant nutrition and recovery especially in the neonatal intensive care unit.