Pediatrics, Neonatology & Primary Care

Biography

Biography: Ciba Sunil Raphael

Abstract

Family-centered care is a philosophy of care that embraces a partnership between staff and families. It has become an integral part of providing high quality neonatal care Unrestricted parental presence in the NICU, parental involvement in infant care giving, open communication with parents are basic tenets of family-centered care in our Neonatal unit. By virtue of their continual presence and role in the NICU, Nurses are in a unique position to support family-centered care. There is growing evidence that relationship based, family centered and developmentally supportive approach to NICU Care is effective in reducing neonatal morbidity and improving neurobehavioral development of preterm infants. The main components of this approach are: opening of (NICUs) to parents, involvement of parents in care of their baby, parents’ psychological support, Neonatal Individualized Developmental Care Program (NIDCAP), breast milk feeding and kangaroo mother care. Neonatal care with a family focus helps minimize adverse effects with: * A Family-Centered Care philosophy * Family-friendly facilities * Family oriented training and support > Ensure appropriate environment for babies in NICU > Ensure safety & efficacy of neonatal treatments. > Develop policies & programs that promote parenting skills & encourage maximum involvement of families in care > Promote meaningful long-term follow-up for all high-risk NICU survivors. Evidence suggest that, family integrated care is the voice of the modern family in Neonatal unit and provides significant benefit not only in terms of infant medical outcomes, but will also reduce stress, anxiety and depression in the family; improve their ability to cope and through structured competency based educational programs will result in true partnership with parents. In this presentation the historical perspective and recent evidence will be discussed also highlighted the basic principles of A Family-Centered Care and then compared the various existing professional and parent focused neonatal care programs and the advantages over those traditional models of care. Family-Centered Care provides parents with training, education, support which enables them to be primary careers and gives them confidence, knowledge and independence to take care of their infants while in the neonatal unit and post discharge who may have complex medical needs.