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To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in changes in neonatal care, sometimes resulting in a separation between parents and their newborn. Knowledge about parents' experiences of this separation is limited. PURPOSE: To explore parents' experiences of separation from their newborn due to COVID-19....

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Autores principales: Lindgren, Emilia Biskop, Thernström Blomqvist, Ylva, Diderholm, Barbro, Grandahl, Maria
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10371055/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36999904
http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/ANC.0000000000001073
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author Lindgren, Emilia Biskop
Thernström Blomqvist, Ylva
Diderholm, Barbro
Grandahl, Maria
author_facet Lindgren, Emilia Biskop
Thernström Blomqvist, Ylva
Diderholm, Barbro
Grandahl, Maria
author_sort Lindgren, Emilia Biskop
collection PubMed
description The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in changes in neonatal care, sometimes resulting in a separation between parents and their newborn. Knowledge about parents' experiences of this separation is limited. PURPOSE: To explore parents' experiences of separation from their newborn due to COVID-19. METHODS: Interviews with parents (n = 11) separated from their newborn. RESULTS: The parents' experiences of being separated from their newborn were expressed under 3 themes: “To create a sense of safety in an insecure situation”; “Unexpected start to parenthood”; and “To be reunited.” Parents felt abandoned and alone, even if they had support from significant others. Although they considered the separation as undesired, wanting to be with their newborn infant, it was secondary to not wanting to infect the infant with COVID-19. Furthermore, lacking information about a potentially lethal virus adds to the uncertainty that comes with having a newborn. The separation affected the whole family, some for a long time afterward. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE AND RESEARCH: If a new situation with potentially life-threatening effects, like the COVID-19 pandemic, occurs again, considering the experiences of these parents is paramount. Precautions should be taken to minimize the potential harm. If a separation between newborns and parents is inevitable, parents need preparation and transparent information prior to the separation and before the reunion. Well-thought-out policies must be in place to minimize the impact of a separation on both parties. Parents should be able to have a deputy parent present during an undesired but necessary separation from their newborn.
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spelling pubmed-103710552023-07-27 To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive Lindgren, Emilia Biskop Thernström Blomqvist, Ylva Diderholm, Barbro Grandahl, Maria Adv Neonatal Care Special Series: Parenting During COVID The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in changes in neonatal care, sometimes resulting in a separation between parents and their newborn. Knowledge about parents' experiences of this separation is limited. PURPOSE: To explore parents' experiences of separation from their newborn due to COVID-19. METHODS: Interviews with parents (n = 11) separated from their newborn. RESULTS: The parents' experiences of being separated from their newborn were expressed under 3 themes: “To create a sense of safety in an insecure situation”; “Unexpected start to parenthood”; and “To be reunited.” Parents felt abandoned and alone, even if they had support from significant others. Although they considered the separation as undesired, wanting to be with their newborn infant, it was secondary to not wanting to infect the infant with COVID-19. Furthermore, lacking information about a potentially lethal virus adds to the uncertainty that comes with having a newborn. The separation affected the whole family, some for a long time afterward. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE AND RESEARCH: If a new situation with potentially life-threatening effects, like the COVID-19 pandemic, occurs again, considering the experiences of these parents is paramount. Precautions should be taken to minimize the potential harm. If a separation between newborns and parents is inevitable, parents need preparation and transparent information prior to the separation and before the reunion. Well-thought-out policies must be in place to minimize the impact of a separation on both parties. Parents should be able to have a deputy parent present during an undesired but necessary separation from their newborn. Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. 2023-08 2023-03-31 /pmc/articles/PMC10371055/ /pubmed/36999904 http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/ANC.0000000000001073 Text en © 2023 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives License 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) (CCBY-NC-ND), where it is permissible to download and share the work provided it is properly cited. The work cannot be changed in any way or used commercially without permission from the journal.
spellingShingle Special Series: Parenting During COVID
Lindgren, Emilia Biskop
Thernström Blomqvist, Ylva
Diderholm, Barbro
Grandahl, Maria
To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive
title To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive
title_full To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive
title_fullStr To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive
title_full_unstemmed To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive
title_short To Feel Abandoned in an Insecure Situation: Parents' Experiences of Separation From Their Newborn Due to the Mother Being COVID-19 Positive
title_sort to feel abandoned in an insecure situation: parents' experiences of separation from their newborn due to the mother being covid-19 positive
topic Special Series: Parenting During COVID
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10371055/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36999904
http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/ANC.0000000000001073
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