Neonatal intensive care unit admissions before and after the adoption of the baby friendly hospital initiative

Working dilemmas in care for breastfed newborns: An exploratory study in a single center in Taiwan

BACKGROUND

Clinical medical staff should be aware of and examine the correlation between breastfeeding and neonatal hospitalization. Additional attention should be paid to work dilemmas experienced by the nursing staff caring for newborns to avoid exposing newborns to hospitalization risk.

OBJECTIVE

The present study investigated the working dilemmas by neonatal nurses caring for breastfed newborns and risk of newborn hospitalization.

METHODS

This hospital-based study in Taiwan surveyed 84 neonatal nurses using a structured questionnaire entitled "Working Dilemmas in Clinical Care for Breastfed Newborns."

RESULTS

Collected data were analyzed statistically (descriptive analysis, chi-square test, and t test) using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) staff noted that breastfed newborns showed a high risk of hospitalization and nursery staff highlighted a lack of manpower and time. NICU staff experienced more working dilemmas (117.460±12.260) than nursery staff (87.410±15.820) when caring for breastfed newborns (t = 1.080, P < 0.001). NICU staff reported a higher risk of hospitalization in breastfed newborns and experienced more working dilemmas caring for these patients compared with nursery staff, who reported a lack of manpower and time.

CONCLUSION

Our findings highlight the working dilemmas by neonatal nurses and can serve as a foundation for further critical studies.

The Term Newborn: Delivery Room Triage and Transitions of Care

Term newborn infants without significant medical problems usually transition from fetal to newborn life without medical assistance. Infants requiring therapy often need care in a neonatal intensive care unit as opposed to a well-baby unit. Infants with unclear physiologic status or disease that may require therapies in the immediate newborn period may benefit from a period of observation with close monitoring before admission to a well-baby unit. Whenever possible, providing care for a newborn infant in an area that provides care for the newborn and mother together in the same room facilitates adaptation to normal breastfeeding and family bonding.