Maternal perceptions of newborn umbilical cord treatments and healing

To determine mothers' cord care practices and perceptions of their newborns' cord treatment and healing.

Exploratory, descriptive.

Urban teaching hospital providing care for children, women, and families in eastern Canada.

A convenience sample of 30 women with healthy full-term infants.

Mothers' concerns about newborn umbilical cord care and cord treatments using an 18-item questionnaire, the Cord Rating Scale.

Mothers' concerns regarding their newborns' cord included bleeding at the time of cord separation and cord odor. Several mothers (20%) did not recall being given information on cord care, and others had received conflicting information. Although most other mothers did begin the recommended treatment, they did not follow the recommended schedule. There was a strong positive relationship between the mothers' and nurses' ratings of the newborns' cord condition.

The findings suggest that mothers continue to have concerns about their newborn's cord and cord care after hospital discharge. These concerns have implications for nursing practice. The findings also support the role that a mother has in accurately reporting the condition of her newborn's cord.