Stressors of Parents of Hospitalized Preterm Infants: a study in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Afzalipour Hospital, Kerman, Iran

Background: Birth is a pleasant event, but premature birth and subsequently neonate hospitalization in the neonatal intensive care unit, is stressful for parents. Therefore, identifying sources of stress and applying strategies to reduce parental stress seems to be necessary. The present study was conducted to determine the sources of stress in parents of preterm infants hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit of Afzalipour Hospital in Kerman, Iran. Methods: In this descriptive analytic study, 154 parents of premature infants hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit completed the Parent Stressor Scale questionnaire. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics and through SPSS19 software package. Results: According to the results, participants experienced a moderate level of stress during hospitalization of their preterm infant (2.61± 0.69). Among "environmental stressors", the sound of the monitor alarm, among "parental role alteration stressors", parents' despair in supporting their neonate against pain and painful procedures, and among stressors related to the "appearance and behavior of infants", observing neonate in pain brought the highest level of stress to parents. Parents experienced different levels of stress according to some personal characteristics such as relationship with baby, previous history of hospital admission and type of stay in the ward. Conclusion: Since preterm birth and neonate hospitalization causes parents' stress, it is necessary that medical staff, in addition to neonate care, support parents of the neonate in order to decrease their stress level and consequently prevent negative outcomes for their neonate and family.