Sick babies whose parents help deliver their hospital care have a better recovery, research suggests.
A study of 1,800 premature babies found they put on weight more quickly if their parents were involved in ward rounds, took their temperature and administered their medicine.
The study, carried out intensive care wards in Canada, New Zealand and Australia, found parents’ wellbeing also improved.
The paper, published in the Lancet Child and Adolescent Health journal, could transform the way sick children are cared for.
Sick babies whose parents help deliver their hospital care have a better recovery, research suggests (file photo)
Babies whose parents were involved in their care also were more likely to successfully breastfeed when they were discharged.
The researchers, led by experts at Sinai Health System in Toronto, said parental care would lead to long term benefits in their child development.
They said for too long hospitals have considered parents ‘peripheral’ to the care of the very sick children in intensive care units.
Mothers and fathers are often viewed as mere visitors, rather than as being integral to the babies’ recovery.
Researcher Dr Karel O’Brien said: ‘How care is provided to the family, not just the infant, has a positive effect on the wellbeing of both infant and family.
‘Weight gain, breastfeeding and reduced parental stress and anxiety are all associated with positive neurodevelopmental outcomes, suggesting that integrating parents into the care of infants at this early stage could potentially have longer-term benefits.’
In the trial, 26 neonatal intensive care units in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, were randomly assigned to either take part in the family programme, or carry on as usual.
The units which took part in the family project asked each parent to commit to spending six hours a day, five days a week at the baby’s bedside.
A study of 1,800 premature babies found they put on weight more quickly if their parents were involved in ward rounds, took their temperature and administered their medicine (file photo)
They were given a bed, comfortable reclining chairs and free parking, and delivered care such as washing, feeding, dressing, giving oral medication, and taking temperature.
They were also asked to take part in ward rounds, discuss clinical decisions and chart their infant’s growth and progress.
The researchers found the babies in the family programme put on more weight – 26.7g a day, compared to 24.8g a day for those cared for by nurses alone.
Parents also had lower levels of stress and anxiety.
And once discharged, 70 per cent of mothers who had cared for their babies managed to breastfeed six times a day, compared to 63 per cent for the other babies.
Dr O’Brien said: ‘Parents are too often perceived as visitors to the intensive care unit.
‘Our findings challenge this approach and show the benefits to both infants and their families of incorporating parents as key members of the infant’s health care team, and helping parents to assume the role of primary caregiver as soon as possible.’