The Effect of a Virtual Educational and Supportive Intervention on the Mothers’ Resilience with Preterm Infants: A Quasi-experimental Study

Abstract

Background: Infants’ admission to neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) leads to the psychological vulnerability of their mothers. Providing education and implementing supportive interventions can improve the quality of parental care of premature infants and empower parents. The presence and participation of parents in the care of preterm infants may improve parents’ resilience. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the effect of a virtual educational and supportive intervention on the mothers’ resilience with preterm infants admitted to NICUs in 2020. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 100 mothers with preterm infants admitted to Afzalipour Hospital in Kerman in 2020. The participants were selected by purposive and convenience sampling and were divided into intervention and control groups using a random number table. The educational and supportive training intervention program was implemented for 2 weeks in the intervention group. However, the control group only received routine care. The data were collected using a demographic information questionnaire and the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). The collected data were analyzed using SPSS version 22 at a significance level of 0.05. Results: Resilience and all its dimensions showed significant improvements in the intervention group compared to their resilience before the intervention. The mean resilience scores in the intervention group were 57.62 ± 13.95 and 76.96 ± 08.07 before and after the intervention (P < 0.05). The mean resilience scores in the control group were 60.40 ± 14.41 and 62.70 ± 11.09 before and after the intervention (P > 0.05). Overall, the mean scores of resilience and its dimensions increased significantly in the intervention group than in the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Implementing a virtual educational and supportive intervention improved the resilience of mothers with preterm infants. Overall, this program can be used by nursing managers and nurses to provide supportive care for parents of premature infants to improve the quality of care in these wards. Further research can be done to examine the attitudes and experiences of health care workers in this field.