Kangaroo care (KC) for the preterm infant is generally accepted as a safe intervention and appears to be beneficial. However, evaluation of the application of KC for preterm infants has not been studied in Taiwan. The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical practice of KC in five medical centers in Northern Taiwan to understand the related factors influencing the KC practice. Thirty mothers who signed informed consent and participated in this study were interviewed by using a semi-structured interview guide. The study found that five hospitals only provided the early, intermediate, and late KC at NICU, the birth and very early KC were not available at delivery room or recovery room. The opportunities and criteria were preterm infants who have received the close treatment and observation, vital signs stable, no bradycardia or apnea events. However, some Chinese cultural beliefs and practices act as barriers to the practice of KC. These include perceptions that "doing the month-mothers need to reside at home for one month after discharge from hospital", "warmth is very important for the mothers postbirth", and "mothers need to take care of the older child at home". Therefore, grandmothers and relatives could not allow the mothers to go outside, which hindered mothers coming form home to provide KC. The findings appear that cultural beliefs and practice, combined with support from family members, may be the most important factors influencing the clinical practice of KC in Taiwan. This study suggests that nurses should encourage family members to do KC during the preterm infant's stay in the hospital when mother is unavailable to provide KC. Moreover, nurses need to learn how to effectively teach KC so that they provide correct and consistent guidance to the mothers, such as KC indications, benefits, risks, and procedures.
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