Kangaroo Care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit-A Practice Change Initiative

Kangaroo care (KC) is essential for both the infant's health and the mother's well-being.

The purpose of this quality improvement (QI) project is to implement a practice change that aligns the neonatal intensive care unit's (NICU) KC policy with the most recent World Health Organization guidelines, potentially improving the outcomes of preterm and very low birth-weight infants. The aims were to revise the unit's current KC policy, create a pamphlet for parent distribution regarding KC awareness, and increase the number of KC sessions by 20% and the duration in minutes of KC sessions by 50% for eligible infant-mother dyads following implementation of the updated policy.

A framework developed and published by Guenther et al guided intervention readiness and delivery action sequence in this project. The assessment was made through successful workgroup participation consisting of 5 direct care registered nurses and the project leader. Pre-/post-practice change improvement interventions were assessed by comparing KC-eligible daily census, if KC was performed, and the average duration of individual KC sessions in minutes.

After the implementation of an updated policy and distribution of a newly created KC parent pamphlet, there was a 58.1% increase in the number of KC sessions offered and a 140% increase in duration.

Expanding the role of KC in the NICU may decrease an infant's NICU-associated morbidities, thereby decreasing healthcare costs. This project's findings may serve as a model for other units to expand their KC practices.