Nurses' perspectives on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on parental involvement in NICUs

Background Nurses are key healthcare professionals in service provision to infants and their families in neonatal intensive care units and are pivotal in observing parental involvement in their infant’s care. The COVID-19 pandemic led to various restrictions which impacted these units specifically. Aim To investigate nurses’ perspectives regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on parental involvement in their infants’ care whilst in neonatal intensive care units. Methods A quantitative cross-sectional online survey was used to collect nurses’ perspectives. Thirty-five nurses working in this unit in three hospitals were recruited through purposive sampling to participate: one public academic hospital (n = 12) [Hospital A], one private hospital (n = 11) [Hospital B] and one public tertiary hospital (n = 12) [Hospital C]. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics and content analysis. Results A total of 80 % of nurses (n = 28) indicated the COVID-19 pandemic impacted parental involvement in the care of infants in neonatal intensive care units during the years 2020 and 2021. None of the hospitals restricted parents completely from being in the unit, however, involvement was impacted by implemented visitation restrictions. Two themes were identified from the nurses’ perspectives namely, “changes in visitation regulations”, and “reduced parental involvement”. Conclusion Parental involvement requires physical parental presence, and restrictions in the wards reduced this involvement. Although reduced, parental presence in the hospitals allowed breastfeeding to continue, showing the importance of parental involvement was recognised. Evidence-based guidelines that promote parental involvement and family-centred care in hospitals need to be implemented worldwide to benefit admitted infants and families, despite pandemic restrictions.