Analysis of the development of children discharged from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit from parents’ point of view

OBJECTIVES: to analyze the development of children discharged from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and how hospitalization interferes with child development, from parents’ point of view. METHODS: a descriptive-exploratory, documentary and qualitative study, carried out with parents of children discharged from the Intensive Care Unit through a telephone survey and supplementation in medical records. Data were analyzed using Bardin’s tool and discussed according to scientific evidence. RESULTS: from parents’ point of view, delay in physical development was not observed, however difficulties in breastfeeding and weight gain were reported. Changes in speech and changes in behavior considered abnormal were also delays in child evolution. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: from parents’ point of view, changes in speech may be associated with hospitalization in an Intensive Care Unit, while difficulties related to breastfeeding and delays in cognition may be altered by conditions of prematurity and low weight at birth.