Immediate Kangaroo Mother Care for Sick Newborns: Quality Improvement Implementation and Feasibility Study

A systematic separation of late preterm and/or sick newborns from their mothers and families continues to occur in most neonatal units around the world.

The aim of this study was to implement immediate kangaroo mother care for sick newborns from birth.

This study comprised preterm newborns at ≥34 weeks of gestational age and weighing ≥1800 g, term newborns with noninvasive ventilation, and newborns at ≥34 weeks of gestational age and weighing ≥1800 g with congenital anomalies that did not require urgent medical or surgical attention. Newborns were excluded in cases of advanced resuscitation or at medical discretion. The newborns in this study were maintained skin-to-skin for 120 minutes, preferably with the mother, and then transferred skin-to-skin to their destination unit.

In this study, 60 newborns were included. The median time for immediate kangaroo mother care was 120 minutes for all newborns; 100% of the time was spent with the mother, even when respiratory support was required. Immediate kangaroo mother care was interrupted for 13 of the 60 newborns, and this was more frequent in newborns with heart disease (9/13, 69%), with the main cause being the neonatologist's concern. No causes of separation were related to maternal issues, hypoglycemia, or temperature instability, and no incidents such as hypothermia were observed during kangaroo mother care, either at birth or during transport.

Kangaroo mother care during the first 120 minutes of life in late premature or sick newborns is a safe and feasible practice.