Parental experiences of the neonatal transfer process

Area of Science:

• Neonatal care
• Transport medicine
• Patient experience

Background:

• Parental feedback rates for neonatal transfer in the UK are low (9-11%).
• Current benchmarking relies solely on clinical and logistical quality markers.
• There's a need to explore parental experiences and improve feedback mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore parental experiences of the neonatal transfer process.
• To identify methods for increasing parental feedback rates.
• To develop family-centered quality markers for neonatal transport.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-methods study combining qualitative (group interviews, n=5) and quantitative (surveys, n=453) approaches.
• Thematic analysis was used to analyze collected data.
• Involved parents who had undergone the neonatal transfer process.

Main Results:

• Overall parental satisfaction was high (74.6%).
• Key areas for improvement include parental involvement, traveling with the baby, communication, and logistics.
• Neonatal transfers significantly impact parental mental health.

Conclusions:

• While satisfaction is high, improvements in communication, logistics, and family-centered care are needed.
• Developing parental experience quality markers could enhance neonatal transport.
• Collaborative efforts are needed to improve family-centered experiences in neonatal transfers.