Intervention éducationnelle visant à favoriser l’adaptation de la fratrie lors de l’hospitalisation de nouveau-nés prématurés à l’unité néonatale
Enlarging a family requires that oldest children adapt to a new role and a new family situation. When an infant is born prematurely, this adaptation becomes complex due to the hospitalization of the newborn in the neonatal intensive care unit [NICU]. This unexpected and stressful situation has not only an impact on parents, but also on siblings. Although it is essential to favor siblings’ adaptation adequately, support to siblings is often overlooked in NICUs. An intervention based on a scientific literature review on siblings’ adaptation and on the Roy Adaptation Model was developed and implemented in a level III NICU of a university healthcare center in Montreal to favor siblings’ adaptation. Three families participated and according to findings, siblings and parents were satisfied with the intervention. However, two parents out of three indicated feeling neutral about whether the intervention met their expectations. Overall, the intervention seems to have the potential to facilitate siblings’ adaptation during the experience of having a preterm infant hospitalized in the NICU.
Adaptation Sibling Adaptation Neonatal unit Family-centered approach Educational intervention