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. 2023 Feb;29(1):18-27.
doi: 10.1177/10748407221114326. Epub 2022 Aug 1.

The Impact of Parental Presence Restrictions on Canadian Parents in the NICU During COVID-19: A National Survey

Marsha Campbell-Yeo  1   2 , Justine Dol  2 , Holly McCulloch  2 , Brianna Hughes  1 , Amos Hundert  2 , Fabiana Bacchini  3 , Leah Whitehead  2 , Jehier Afifi  1   2 , Lynsey Alcock  2 , Tanya Bishop  2 , Jon Dorling  4 , Rebecca Earle  2 , Annette Elliott Rose  2 , Darlene Inglis  2 , Carye Leighton  2 , Gail MacRae  2 , Andrea Melanson  2 , C David Simpson  1   2 , Michael Smit  1
Affiliations

The Impact of Parental Presence Restrictions on Canadian Parents in the NICU During COVID-19: A National Survey

Marsha Campbell-Yeo et al. J Fam Nurs. 2023 Feb.

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to explore parental perspectives on the impact of parent restrictions imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic across Canadian Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs). A co-designed online survey was conducted targeting parents (n = 235) of infants admitted to a Canadian NICU from March 1, 2020, until March 5, 2021. Parents completed the survey from 38 Canadian NICUs. Large variation in the severity of policies regarding parental presence was reported. Most respondents (68.9%) were classified as experiencing high restrictions, with one or no support people allowed in the NICU, and felt that policies were less easy to understand, felt less valued and respected, and found it more challenging to access medicine or health care. Parents reported gaps in care related to self-care, accessibility, and mental health outcomes. There is significant variation in parental restrictions implemented across Canadian NICUs. National guidelines are needed to support consistent and equitable care practices.

Keywords: family nursing; family-centered care; hospital policy; neonatal intensive care unit; parent perspective.

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Conflict of interest statement

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Subdivision of responses to presence policy questions by “high restrictions” and “low restrictions” cohorts.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Parent responses to various events ranging from commonly occurring for most families to less frequently occurring events. Note. Points represent individual responses. Lower bar represents the 25th percentile, middle bar represents the mean, and the upper bar represents the 75th percentile.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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