Working dilemmas in care for breastfed newborns: An exploratory study in a single center in Taiwan.

Abstract

Clinical medical staff should be aware of and examine the correlation between breastfeeding and neonatal hospitalization. Additional attention should be paid to work dilemmas experienced by the nursing staff caring for newborns to avoid exposing newborns to hospitalization risk. The present study investigated the working dilemmas by neonatal nurses caring for breastfed newborns and risk of newborn hospitalization. This hospital-based study in Taiwan surveyed 84 neonatal nurses using a structured questionnaire entitled "Working Dilemmas in Clinical Care for Breastfed Newborns." Collected data were analyzed statistically (descriptive analysis, chi-square test, and t test) using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software. Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) staff noted that breastfed newborns showed a high risk of hospitalization and nursery staff highlighted a lack of manpower and time. NICU staff experienced more working dilemmas (117.460±12.260) than nursery staff (87.410±15.820) when caring for breastfed newborns (t = 1.080, P <  0.001). NICU staff reported a higher risk of hospitalization in breastfed newborns and experienced more working dilemmas caring for these patients compared with nursery staff, who reported a lack of manpower and time. Our findings highlight the working dilemmas by neonatal nurses and can serve as a foundation for further critical studies.