Abstract
Aim
To describe the impact of the COVID-19 restrictions on the caregiving activities and psychological well-being of fathers with infants admitted to neonatal units.
Methods
Cross-sectional study using adapted COPE-IS and COPE-IU tools. Participants' recruitment occurred online via social media and parents' associations. Online survey in English, French and Italian were distributed and promoted via websites and social media platforms of parent's associations. The study was undertaken across 12 countries in Asia, Australia, Africa and Europe.
Results
A total of 108 fathers of NICU infants completed the survey. COVID-19 related restrictions were categorised into 3 types: no restrictions, partial and severe restrictions. Fathers who experienced partial restrictions reported more involvement in caregiving activities but high levels of emotional difficulties and sleeping problems compared to those who experienced full or no restrictions.
Conclusion
Given the impact on the psychological well-being of fathers, restrictions should be avoided as much as possible in the neonatal unit and fathers given free access to their infants if they follow appropriate infection control precautions.
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of Publication
1-1-2022
Volume
111
Issue
9
PubMed ID
35708125
Publication Title
Acta Paediatrica, International Journal of Paediatrics
Publisher
Wiley
School
School of Nursing and Midwifery
RAS ID
44797
Funders
Edith Cowan University (Open access publishing)
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
First Page
1771
Last Page
1778
Comments
Adama, E. A., Koliouli, F., Provenzi, L., Feeley, N., van Teijlingen, E., Ireland, J., ... & FINESSE Group. (2022). COVID‐19 restrictions and psychological well‐being of fathers with infants admitted to NICU—An exploratory cross‐sectional study. Acta Paediatrica, 111(9), 1771-1778.
https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.16455