Impact of Serial Bedside Video Calls on Stress Level in Parents of Infants Admitted to NICU

Purpose

The goal of this randomized prospective interventional study is to determine if serial bedside video calls w/audio feature to NICU parents in addition to the routine phone and/or bedside updates can reduce parental stress level. The main question it aims to answer is if the impact of audio-visual calls to nicu parents can improve parent-infant relationship in the form of reduced parental anxiety/stress level. Participants will be parents of infants admitted to NICU for more than seven (7) days. Parents in Group A will receive serial video call communication, 2-3 days a week in addition to the daily phone and/or bedside updates. Parents in Group B will receive daily phone and/or bedside updates per our NICU routine. Parents will complete a series of questionnaires (PSS-NICU, STAI Y-1 & 2 and MSPSS) at 3 designated periods during an 8-week time frame. Researchers will compare Group A (intervention group) and Group B (control group) to see if there is any difference in the stress levels in relation to the intervention (serial video calls) at the end of the study time frame.

Condition

  • Stress

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Between 7 Days and 60 Days
Eligible Sex
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
No

Inclusion Criteria

  • Newborns with 7 days or more of NICU stay

Exclusion Criteria

Infant with - intrauterine drug exposure - major critical congenital cardiac anomaly - major neurologic anomaly - chromosomal disorder.

Study Design

Phase
N/A
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention Model
Parallel Assignment
Intervention Model Description
Group A (intervention group) will receive a bedside video call 2-3 days a week in addition to the daily NICU phone updates and/or bedside updates using the NICU iPad w/ "Doximity" app. This permits a link to be sent to the parent to call at a given time if the parent desires or the provider can call directly to the parent at the planned time. Parents will be shown their infant, allowed for direct talk to their baby and then updated on the baby's status and plans by the NICU team and answer any question or concern the parent may have. The device will be outside the incubator and the parents will be shown their infant through the open incubator window, so they can interact with their baby. Group B (control group) will receive the daily phone and/or bedside updates done routinely in our NICU already without the intervention.
Primary Purpose
Supportive Care
Masking
None (Open Label)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Experimental
GROUP A (intervention group)
Parents in this group will receive bedside video call 2-3 days a week in addition to the routine NICU phone update and/or bedside update using the NICU iPad w/ "Doximity" app.
  • Other: Serial bedside video call communication
    Bedside video call with audio features, given to NICU parent/guardian 2-3 days a week for an 8-week period or till infant is discharged, whichever comes first.
    Other names:
    • Doximity app on iPad will be used for the video call.
No Intervention
Group B (control group)
Parents in this group will receive the routine phone and/or bedside updates done in our NICU already without the intervention (serial video calls).

Recruiting Locations

John H. Stroger Hospital of Cook County
Chicago, Illinois 60612
Contact:
Vishakha Nanda, MD
vishakha.nanda@cookcountyhhs.org

More Details

Status
Recruiting
Sponsor
Cook County Health

Study Contact

Nanda Vishakha, MD
312-864-6000
vishakha.nanda@cookcountyhhs.org

Detailed Description

The NICU can be a stressful environment for new mothers and fathers irrespective of whether NICU stay was anticipated or not. Parental role alteration remains one of the major parental stressors. Our NICU practices family centered care, with efforts to reduce NICU associated stress by daily updates (via phone and in person/by bedside), encouraging parent-infant skin to skin as infant's clinical state permits, allowing physical touch of baby with hands to stimulate bonding, amongst other practices. Studies have looked at stress as well as psychological distress in relation with parental resilience in the NICU, but none have looked at stress level in NICU parents in relation to their infant's clinical status at the time of assessment while adding an intervention. Our study, to the best of our knowledge, will be the first to evaluate the impact of serial bedside video call w/audio feature to NICU parents, permitting audio interaction with their infant, with an interval assessment of parent's stress level. Parents will be randomized into 2 groups. The parent/guardian designated at the time of initial enrollment/consenting will be asked to complete the forms at subsequent assessments and participate in the study intervention. Data collection will be at 3 points during an 8-week period. Parental assessment will be done when they are visiting their infant. Parents will receive the following questionnaires during the 3 assessments and Infant clinical severity score will be completed at all assessments by the research investigator. Assessment 1 (7-10 days of life): Socio-demographic sheet, MSPSS, PSS-NICU Assessment 2 (14-21 days of life): PSS-NICU Assessment 3 (6-8 weeks of life): MSPSS, PSS-NICU, STAI Y-1, STAI Y-2 Socio-demographic data Infant Clinical severity Score: This quantifies the degree of infant clinical severity at the time of assessment for our study. This score is not intended to portray mortality or morbidity. Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social support (MSPSS) Parental stressor Scale- Neonatal Intensive Care unit (PSS-NICU) 3 subtype State- Trait-Anxiety-Inventory Form Y-1 - is a well validated form used to measure one's anxiety state at a specific moment in time. State- Trait-Anxiety-Inventory Form Y-2 - is a well validated tool that requires the individual to describe how they generally feel.