Effects of an Infant Care Education Program for Mothers of Late-preterm Infants on Parenting Confidence, Breastfeeding Rates, and Infants' Growth and Readmission Rates

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of an education program for mothers of late-preterm infants on parenting confidence, breastfeeding rate, and infants’ growth and readmission rate. METHODS: The participants were 53 mothers of late-preterm infants (26 in the experimental group and 27 in the control group). The experimental group was administered the late-preterm care education program while the control group received standard care. The program consisted of two sessions during hospitalization after birth, one session at the time of discharge, and telephone and social networking service consultations at weekly intervals for the month following discharge. The collected data were analyzed using the t-test, χ(2) test, and repeated-measures analysis of variance. RESULTS: Parenting confidence and the breastfeeding rate were significantly higher in the experimental group than in the control group. However, there was no significant difference in the late-preterm infants’ growth and readmission rates between the experimental and control groups. CONCLUSION: A care education program for mothers of late-preterm infants can be a useful nursing intervention in clinical practice.