Listening to the parent voice to inform person-centred neonatal care.

Abstract

Family integrated care (FIC), where parents are an integral part of their baby’s care and decision-making can enhance parental involvement and empowerment, contributing to decreased parental separation and stress. It follows that parents can also be a central part of neonatal education for staff in the neonatal speciality. This paper focuses on what students and staff can learn from parents about what they feel is important to make their experience better. A narrative, interpretive approach was undertaken to collect and analyse parent interview narratives. A specific question was posed to a purposive sample of parents who have had premature babies about what health professionals can learn from them. Thematic analysis revealed five key themes relating to the importance of: communicating; listening; empathising; acknowledging (the parent’s role); realising (what matters to parents). These elements were incorporated into a framework named by the mnemonic, ‘CLEAR’. This highlights what parents want staff to be cognisant of when caring for them and their babies. Learning from the parents in our care enables a greater understanding of their experiences at difficult and challenging times. Having a deeper understanding of parents’ experiences can contribute to enhanced empathic learning.