Parents’ and carers’ experiences of transition and aftercare following a child's discharge from a paediatric intensive care unit to an in-patient ward setting:A qualitative systematic review

Objectives: To explore parents’ experiences of transition and aftercare following their child’s discharge from a pediatric intensive care unit to an inpatient ward.Methods: A qualitative systematic review was conducted. Electronic databases CINAHL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Psych INFO, and ASSIA were searched for qualitative studies with no date limits imposed. Methodological quality was assessed using the JBI QARI standardised critical appraisal instrument. Data were extracted into a standardised data extraction tool. Findings were pooled using a meta-aggregative approach.Results: Four studies were included in the final review that included a total of 95 participants. Fortynine findings were extracted and through an iterative process resulting in four synthesised findings being developed. These included: (1) Dynamic emotional response pre, peri and post-transfer; (2) Involvement in care absent but fundamental to functioning; (3) Changes in care delivery and environment provoking adverse emotions; and (4) Transition as a physical, emotional and social balancing act.Conclusion: Transitioning from the pediatric intensive care unit to an in-patient ward can be a challenging time for parents, exposing them to a turbulent emotional and social status, and depleting their personal resources. Parents are aware of differences in the organisation and delivery of care between clinical areas which can compound the adversity experienced. Health professionals need to provide targeted support in order to mitigate these negative emotional, physical and social effects experienced

A QUALITY IMPROVEMENT STUDY OF THE implimentation of the VERMONT NEWBORN PLAN OF SAFE CARE AMONG NURSING STAFF AT VERMONT HOSPITALS

PURPOSE: The purpose of this quality improvement needs assessment was to evaluate the implementation of the Vermont Newborn Plan of Safe Care (VNPSC) since its introduction 17 months ago. These plans were created in response to federal mandates to create plans that address the needs of infants affected by substance exposure during pregnancy. A secondary goal of the study was to identify areas for improvement of its implementation by nursing staff. METHODS: This study was conducted using a mixed-methods, cross sectional survey design. Data collection took place over a 3-week period and included 12 Vermont hospitals. Analysis was completed using SPSS, Excel, and Lime Survey software packages. RESULTS: 10 out of 12 hospitals participated in the survey and 62% of participants were registered nurses who do not hold a management position. A majority of participants responded that they believed more training would be helpful, and that they experienced confusion and difficulty when completing the plan. Respondents also found it to be too time consuming to complete the plan when a social worker or case manager was not available to help. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that implementation of the VNPSC would benefit from a standardized training procedure for all professionals involved in creating these plans. It also indicates that the majority of nurses who write plans for safe care would benefit from being able to consult with someone who is fully trained on the process. Future research on the effectiveness of VNPSC implementation should include a broader variety of healthcare professionals in the sample, with a focus on social workers and case managers, in addition to nursing staff

A quality improvement project: implementing safe sleep practice in a neonatal intensive care unit.

Significance: The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends safe sleep practices (SSP) to reduce infant sleep-related deaths. Annually 3,500 babies die due to improper sleeping conditions, and Kentucky is among the lower-performing states for infant sleep safety. The AAP recommends initiating SSP with infants in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) and recently expanded recommendations in 2022. Presently, there is no regulation of healthcare clinician education regarding SSP or role-modeling behavior in the in-patient setting. Purpose: This scholarly project aimed to improve knowledge and awareness of SSP by improving clinician knowledge and behavior of SSP use in NICU and improving parent education on SSP. Methods: This Quality improvement project followed the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle framework in a Level III NICU. Interventions: Provision of clinician education on the AAP’s recommendations for SSP, pre/post-education assessment to evaluate NICU clinician knowledge and behavior of SSP. Implementation of a process for determining infant eligibility to initiate SSP, staff documentation of SSP initiation, and educational enhancements provided to parents. Results: From February 2023 to April 2023, 41 NICU clinicians participated in a pre-and post-education assessment. Statistical analysis of the assessment did not indicate significance. However, assessment scores improved. Additionally, 25 chart audits were conducted to evaluate improvements in placing infants in SSP and parent receipt of education. Chart audits revealed improvement in parent education from 33% to 70% and implementing SSP from 18% to 100%. Discussion: This initiative has shown that educating clinicians improves their knowledge and behavior surrounding SSP implementation

The Opioid Crisis: Evaluating Current Practices and Outcomes for Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) in the infant are severe symptoms from opioid exposure in utero. These symptoms include: “central nervous system irritability, autonomic over-reactivity, and gastrointestinal tract dysfunction” (Ko et al., 2016). The treatment for NAS can be a combination of drug therapy and non-pharmacological interventions, but a standardized treatment is lacking. A review of this literature aims to evaluate the available interventions that lead to decreased symptom severity, reduction of length of hospital stay, and a reduction in the use of drug therapy. As a result of the literature review, the nurse researcher supports the standardization of treatment and consistent use of non-pharmacological interventions by nurses to reduce withdrawal symptoms and as an adjunct to drug therapy. This author recommends future research to be used to understand how consistently NICU nurses use non-pharmacological interventions. A question arose from the literature review: What are the most common non-pharmacological interventions used by NICU nurses as part of their institutional protocols? A pilot study with a mixed-methods approach will analyze how NICU nurses around San Francisco (S.F.)Bay Area implements its facility’s NAS protocols. The nurse research will create a survey with open-ended and closed-ended questions. Furthermore, it will be analyzed using descriptive and content analysis. The study will intend to help nurses in three ways: practice effective and consistent non-pharmacological interventions, increase confidence in caring for newborns affected by NAS, and be acquainted with protocols among Bay Area hospitals

Water, Sanitation, Hygiene, and Nutrition in Bangladesh: Can Building Toilets Affect Children's Growth?

This report provides a systematic review of the evidence to date, both published and grey literature, on the relationship between water and sanitation and nutrition. It also examines the potential impact of improved water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) on undernutrition. This is the first report that undertakes a thorough review and discussion of WASH and nutrition in Bangladesh

A Smart Baby Cradle

A small baby needs parents' attention for whole day and 7 days a week, which is impossible due to other priorities like house hold activities, official works and personal works. Day care centre or nanny is the two options available which involves lot of passion. We all live in a world where technologies are sournded all around us. The new generations of parents were raised up with this amazing technology. There are lots of things or items present on these earth that parents will buy to help them care for their baby (Cradle, Crib, Baby Monitor, etc.). So, there is a need for safe and secure place to take good care of the children2019;s need with minimum human intervention and care, which can be accomplished with the help of a 201C;Smart Baby Cradle201D;. A 201C;Smart Baby Cradle201D; provides parents a smart automatic cradle system which help these parents monitor and comfort the baby. The Smart Baby Cradle allows them to monitoring their babies, the cradle, play soothing music, even speak to the baby, observing the temperature of the infant, bed wet sensor which will caution the attendants for bunk wetting of the infant. The mother where so ever she is can have a look on the baby through camera inserted in the cradle. All the fittings are done through Arduino and PIR sensor. Additionally, we provide a predefined nutrition food chart to help baby remain healthy

“An unsuitable job for a woman? Gender and mental health nursing.”

On the evening of Wednesday 12th May 1920 a demonstration took place in the city of Wakefield, in West Yorkshire. According to the ‘Wakefield Express,’ a large procession with banners flying, and with the city’s band at its head, marched through the streets of Wakefield to the Green Market, where a large crowd had assembled. Two lorries acted as platforms for a series of speakers. Speakers on the platform included union officials, local councillors and representatives from the Discharged Sailors’ and Soldiers’ Association. Mr GW Newsome, secretary of the Wakefield branch of the National Asylum Workers’ Union (NAWU), proposed the following motion, ‘That this mass meeting … deplores the continued employment of female labour in male wards at the West Riding Mental Hospital – work which prior to the war was performed by men.