Neonatal nurses' educational needs in a family-centered partnership program: Five ways of knowing

Partnerships between parents and nurses are essential to provide comprehensive family-centered care (FCC) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

We aimed to identify the educational needs of neonatal nurses to develop a family-centered partnership program with parents based on five ways of knowing.

We conducted focus group interviews with 18 NICU nurses working at a tertiary hospital. Data were analyzed using inductive content analysis.

Data were collected from February to March 2023 through semi-structured interviews and then carefully transcribed and analyzed using a qualitative content analysis approach.

We used Carper and Chinn and Kramer's five ways of knowing as a framework for data analysis. Twelve categories emerged: staying updated with evidence-based practice, recognizing FCC, practicing neonatal nursing skills and participating in continued education and professional development (empirical knowledge); engaging in self-reflection and expressing therapeutic empathy (personal knowledge); fostering effective communication and leading cooperative readership, building integrity (esthetic knowledge); maintaining ethical responsibility (ethical knowledge); and developing collaborative teamwork, growing cultural competence (emancipatory knowledge).

This study could be used as a foundation for enhancing NICU nurses' partnerships with parents based on FCC and nurses' educational needs and preferences.