Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 17, 2025
Human Placental and Decidual Organ Cultures to Study Infections at the Maternal-fetal Interface
Published on: July 21, 2016
Maternal Discharge Preparation Needs for Preterm Infants With Less Than 32 Weeks of Gestation: A Qualitative Study
Lingping Zhang1,2, Xiaolu Li3, Junjie He3
1School of Nursing, Health Science Center, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
Aims:
To explore mothers' specific discharge preparation needs for preterm infants born before 32 gestational weeks, providing a foundation for developing effective discharge education programmes.
Design:
A qualitative descriptive design.
Methods:
A semi-structured interview was conducted of 16 mothers of preterm infants less than 32 weeks gestation within 1 week post-discharge in March-June 2024. Directed content analysis was conducted using the Integrated Theory of Health Behaviour Change framework to code, categorise, and identify themes within the interview data.
Results:
Mothers provided rich, practical, experience-driven feedback regarding discharge preparedness needs. The interview resulted in three emergent themes related to the theory's constructs: maternal needs for knowledge acquisition, multifaceted social support, and adjusting learning strategies. These encompass sub-themes such as observing infant behaviour and health status, basic care knowledge, complex medical care guidance; support from medical staff, family members, fellow parents, community healthcare providers, and Wechat platform tools; learning time arrangement, and preferred learning approaches.
Conclusion:
This study explored the discharge preparation needs of mothers with premature infants less than 32 weeks gestation. A nurse-led multidisciplinary team should tailor education programmes, emphasising care knowledge, multifaceted social support, and flexible learning. Future research should assess programme effectiveness on maternal and infant outcomes.
Implications For The Profession And Patient Care:
The study's results provided targeted guidance for clinical nursing education, enhancing mothers' readiness for preterm infant discharge and facilitating a smoother NICU-to-home transition.
Impact:
These findings provide important guidance for nurse-led tailored discharge education and preparation services, thereby promoting improvements in clinical nursing practice and the development of nursing education.
Reporting Method:
The COREQ checklist was used for reporting.
Patient Or Public Contribution:
Four mothers of premature infants (< 32 weeks gestation) provided feedback on the interview guide in the design phase, refining it for the target population, without joining the main study.
Related Concept Videos
01:31Discharge Summary Forms
Here's a detailed look at the key components and guidelines for preparing a discharge summary:
01:25Suctioning the Oropharyngeal Airway
After assembling the equipment, the nurse should practice hand hygiene and don appropriate PPE according to infection control guidelines to avoid the...
01:17Transmission-based Precautions I: Contact, Enteric, and Droplets
Contact Precautions:
Contact precautions are the measures taken to prevent the transmission of infectious agents, especially epidemiologically important microorganisms such as MRSA or influenza, primarily transmitted through direct or indirect contact with an...
01:26Standard Precaution
Hand hygiene is the most crucial means to prevent the transmission of disease. Employers are legally required to provide their workers with personal protective equipment (PPE) to minimize exposure or contact with...