XVII Annual Conference of IAP Maharashtra State (Mahapedicon 2006, Solapur, 3-5th November 2006)

Dr. Sandhya Khadse, Dr. Abhijit Lonikar,
Dr. Kalpesh Datey, Dr.Vidya Pawar, Dr. Vishal,
Dept. of Pediatrics Grant medical college and Sir J.J.Group of Hospital Mumbai.

---

The greatest needs of parents while their neonate is in NICU are to receive honest information about their baby’s care. The usual barriers for visitation of parents and relatives always pose a challenge to treating pediatricians. Unfamiliar environment, insufficient information, about the condition of their baby, treatment and hospital procedures, investigations, inaccessible seniors due to their busy schedule, improper communication skill of residents, ignorant and innocent mothers unable to satisfy the queries in all results into a lot of misunderstandings, arguments and even fights and relatives tend to go against medical advise leading to poor neonatal outcome.

In order to reduce these problems it was thought to conduct parents meeting and this study was done to find out the impact of such meetings. The study was done from Feb 03 to sep. 05. Regular meetings at the interval of every 15 days was conducted in NICU for the parents and all other anxious relatives with prior notification and the meeting was conducted just outside the NICU in the adjacent waiting hall by the senior professor, residents and staff. All the case papers were brought outside. Each case was discussed and every parent and relatives were told about the condition of their baby treatment, complications, the need of investigations and overall prognosis. They were permitted to ask as many questions as possible making it an open forum with lot of interactions. Apart from this all the members were educated about the need of good ANC care, care in NICU and follow up of babies, KMC care, breastfeeding and immunization. At the end of meeting a written feedback was taken.

It was observed that communication with male members and relatives of the family definitely had a positive effect on diminishing the anxiety. Fathers started understanding about the long stay of preterm in NICU. A decreasing trend in neonatal mortality was observed when compared with previous years with out the meeting (13.79-01), (10.1-02), (5.9-03), (4.7-04), (2.13-05). Discharge against medical advice reduced from (34-01), (36-02), (18-03), (8-04), (3-05). Follow up of neonates increased from (30%-01), (35%02), (52%-02), (52%03).