Nursing support for mothers experiencing excessive infant crying: a scoping review protocol

Area of Science:

• Maternal and Child Health
• Nursing Research
• Evidence Synthesis

Background:

• Excessive infant crying presents a significant challenge for mothers, potentially causing fatigue, frustration, and negative mental health outcomes.
• Existing interventions lack synthesized evidence specifically on nurse- or midwife-led support for mothers facing this issue.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a scoping review mapping the existing evidence on nursing support for mothers experiencing excessive infant crying.
• To identify research gaps in the literature concerning interventions for this maternal health challenge.

Main Methods:

• The review will adhere to JBI (Joanna Briggs Institute) methodology for scoping reviews.
• A comprehensive search strategy across multiple databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, ERIC, etc.) and gray literature will be employed.
• Two independent reviewers will screen studies using the PCC (Participants, Concept, Context) framework, extract data, and present findings narratively and tabularly.

Main Results:

• This section will summarize the findings from the data extraction, detailing the types of nursing support identified.
• The results will highlight the characteristics of interventions, populations, and settings documented in the literature.
• Key research gaps in the evidence base will be presented.

Conclusions:

• The review will provide a comprehensive overview of current nursing support strategies for mothers with excessively crying infants.
• It will inform future research directions and clinical practice by identifying areas where evidence is lacking or insufficient.
• Recommendations for enhancing nursing support and maternal mental health outcomes will be suggested.