E focusWhat are parents’ very first experiences of their incredibly preterm infant What are parents’ 1st experiences of seeing their child in the NICUKey messagesHighly emotional time, characterised by a `rollercoaster’ of emotions. Parents reported conflicting feelings about seeing their infant, which incorporated feeling scared or excited about their initial speak to. Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) was an overwhelming Arteether site environment for many parents, especially for all those who had not observed it beforehand or who did not see their child until they had been at NICU. Several fathers felt excluded during the birth and had been confused about their role.Strengths and limitations of this studyThis is the first study to describe the initial experiences of parents of incredibly preterm infants in the UK. Findings are restricted to the experiences of White European parents. Future study must extend this to experiences of minority ethnic groups.School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, East Sussex, UK two Academic Department of Paediatrics, Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals Trust, Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, Brighton, UK three Bliss (The Particular Care Infant Charity), London, UK 4 National Childbirth Trust, London, UK five Nottingham Clinical Trials Unit, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK 6 School of Wellness Sciences, City University London, London, UK Correspondence to Professor Susan Ayers; Susan.Ayers.1city.ac.ukINTRODUCTION Preterm birth could be the single most important determinant of adverse outcomes for infants and parents when it comes to infant morbidity and mortality, the impact around the family members (eg, high-quality of life) and costs for well being services. The highest mortality and morbidity occurs in very preterm babies born prior to 32 weeks gestation.1 Within the UK really pretermbirths account for 51 of infant deaths2 regardless of only PubMed ID:http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21330668 comprising 1.4 of births. Quite preterm birth raises exclusive challenges for parents and for healthcare services. One example is, the birth may be speedy and unexpected, and parents may be instantly separated from their infant. The birth of an incredibly preterm child is often an exceptionally stressful and traumatic time for parents.3 Clearly this has implications for healthcare services. Investigation can inform decisions concerning the organisation and provision of maternity and neonatal intensive care solutions.7 8 However, there has been tiny study focusing on parents’ initial experiences and reactions to preterm birth. Readily available facts is eitherArnold L, Sawyer A, Rabe H, et al. BMJ Open 2013;three:e002487. doi:ten.1136bmjopen-2012-Parents’ very first moments with their extremely preterm babies based on case studies,9 10 parents’ experiences of care throughout their babies’ time in hospital114 or experiences of parents in non-Western cultures.146 Themes emerging from qualitative analysis incorporate the ambiguity of feeling each joy and grief,17 comparisons produced between preterm birth and also the `normal’ full-term experience that mothers have been denied,18 19 and references towards the cold and frightening atmosphere on the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).20 Handful of research have examined fathers’ experiences of preterm birth. A single exception is usually a Swedish study21 which found fathers reported three distinct experiences: (1) suddenness with the preterm birth and feeling unprepared to be a father; (2) their part as responsible for the welfare of their new family and (three) the want to become understood by staff. This highlights the significance of capturing fathers’ experiences at the same time as mothers’ exp.
