A number of fetal-maternal conditions predispose infants to transient hypoglycemia including babies born to mothers with diabetes, small or large for gestational age, premature and low birthweight infants. Neonatal hypoglycemia is not defined by an exact cut point that is applicable to every clinical scenario. National and international position statements on postnatal glucose homeostasis lack full consensus on best-practices on screening and management contributing to mixed communication with families, particularly during level of care transition. Interventions to restore euglycemia may require transfer of the newborn to the neonatal intensive care unit. There is little research to date on how caregivers and families should be educated on neonatal hypoglycemia to facilitate patient-centered care. The purpose of this project is to present findings from focus-groups of mothers of newborns with hypoglycemia and implications for family-centered education.
Methods:
This study uses a qualitative-focus group approach. Three focus groups comprised of mothers with infants who experienced hypoglycemia during the first 24 hours after delivery and volunteering to participate will be recruited from a Woman’s and Children’s hospital in a southwestern state in the spring of 2018. Institutional review board approval will be obtained. Five open-ended questions will be asked to focus groups comprised of approximately six subjects each. To enhance data trustworthiness, member checking will be done within the context of the focus group. A summary of participant perceptions and viewpoints will be developed and presented to focus group participants at the completion of each focus group. Narrative data will be audio recorded and transcribed verbatim from the focus groups. Three members of the research team will independently read and reflect on the data using a qualitative interpretive approach. Similar ideas will be noted, clustered, coded and categorized thematically.
Results:
This study is currently underway and results are pending.
Conclusion:
Existing evidence-based findings informing the education of health care providers and families of newborns with hypoglycemia should be incorporated into healthcare policy and protocol. Multidisciplinary use of protocols and psychologically supportive communication and patient education handouts may help enhance patient-centered care. Further research which includes the patient-family perspective could help to guide the development of patient-centered educational materials.