“What are you carrying?” Experiences of mothers with preterm babies in low-resource setting neonatal intensive care unit: a qualitative study
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Date
2021
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
BMJ open
Abstract
born preterm often have challenges
in feeding, temperature control and breathing difficulty and
are prone to infection during the neonatal period. These
usually necessitate admission to the neonatal intensive
care unit (NICU). Admission to NICU disrupts the mother–
baby bonding.
Objective This study explored the lived experiences of
mothers with preterm babies admitted to NICU in a low-resource
setting.
Study design This was a qualitative study where 16
participants took part in indepth interviews and 35 in focus
group discussions. We included mothers who delivered
and were caring for preterm babies at the NICU of Mulago
National Referral Hospital.
Study setting Data were collected from a public hospital,
which works as a district and national referral hospital
located in the capital of Uganda.
Participants Fifty-one
mothers with preterm babies in the
NICU were sampled and recruited after informed consent.
Data were analysed using manual thematic analysis.
Results There were six themes on the experiences of
mothers of preterm babies in NICU: constant worry and
uncertainty about the survival of their babies, baby feeding
challenges, worries of discharge, communication gaps
between mothers and nurses, community acceptability and
disdain for preterm babies, and financial challenges.
Conclusions and recommendations Mothers of preterm
babies admitted to NICU in a low-resource
setting still
need a lot of support other than the medical care given to
their babies. Support groups in the hospital and community
are recommended to help in dealing with these challenges.
Description
Keywords
Mothers with preterm babies, Low-resource setting, Neonatal intensive care unit
Citation
Namusoke F, Sekikubo M, Namiiro F, et al. “What are you carrying?” Experiences of mothers with preterm babies in low-resource setting neonatal intensive care unit: a qualitative study. BMJ Open 2021;11:e043989. doi:10.1136/ bmjopen-2020-043989