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Updated: Jan 9, 2026

Author Spotlight: Capturing Infant-Caregiver Interactions Through Synchronized Multimodal Data Collection
Published on: May 31, 2024
Orchestrating Human Connection in Digital NICUs: Leadership Strategies for Technology-Enhanced Family-Centred Care
Osama Mohamed Elsayed Ramadan1, Elham Aldousari2, Nadia Bassuoni Elsharkawy3
1Department of Pediatric Nursing, Faculty of Nursing, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
Aim(S):
To explore how neonatal nurse leaders sustain human-centred care while implementing digital technologies in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).
Design:
Qualitative descriptive multi-site study across four NICUs in the Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia (November 2024-May 2025), reported in accordance with COREQ.
Methods:
Purposive maximum-variation sampling recruited 24 neonatal nurse leaders across leadership levels, hospital types and digital maturity stages. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in Arabic or English, transcribed, translated as needed and thematically analysed in NVivo 14 using a hybrid inductive-deductive approach. Directed content analysis of key organisational documents enabled triangulation. Trustworthiness was supported through member checking, peer debriefing, audit trail, external review and double coding of a subset of transcripts.
Results:
Four interrelated strategies were identified: (1) embedding a values-based human-centred vision; (2) selecting and customising digital tools to strengthen, not replace, nurse-family connection; (3) redesigning workflows (e.g., device-free openings, protected presence time, family-inclusive portals) to preserve presence and partnership; and (4) fostering team capability and psychological safety for digital-human integration.
Conclusion:
Human-centred care in digital NICUs is intentionally led and structurally engineered. The study offers a practice-ready framework that translates values into reproducible routines within complex sociotechnical systems.
Implications For The Profession And/Or Patient Care:
The framework supports nurse leaders in aligning digital transformation with family-centred care, protecting nurse-family presence, and enhancing safety, trust and partnership for high-risk neonates.
Impact:
Addresses risks of relational erosion in digital and AI-enabled NICUs and provides transferable nurse-led strategies to sustain ethical, family-centred practice.
Reporting Method:
COREQ-compliant qualitative study.
Patient Or Public Contribution:
No Patient or Public Contribution.
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