The NeNe Foundation insists on the need for mothers and fathers to participate in an active, early, and continued manner in the care of babies born prematurely, with the aim of promoting their brain maturation and appropriate neurodevelopment.
Coinciding with World Prematurity Day, the organization emphasizes that this involvement is especially decisive in newborns with a very low gestational age, since the process of formation and organization of their brain, abruptly interrupted by childbirth, must continue outside the mother’s womb.
"During that period, neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) provide the treatments and the clinical monitoring necessary for survival, but they must also strive to create an environment that respects the needs of an organism that is still immature," explained Juan Arnáez, president of the NeNe Foundation.
"Medical care and technological advances, although essential, are not enough by themselves to offer the best prospects for development. Scientific research has shown that interaction with the parents provides positive sensory experiences that help the baby adapt to its environment, modulate its stress responses, and promote brain maturation and neurodevelopment," the expert added.
Therefore, NeNe proposes a profound change in the way neonatal care is understood: "Mothers and fathers must stop occupying a secondary role in neonatal units in order to fully take on their role as constant and effective primary caregivers of their sons and daughters born prematurely. Their involvement must begin as soon as possible, be maintained throughout the hospital stay, and rely on the support and commitment of healthcare professionals," highlights Nuria Herranz, vice president of the Foundation.
The kangaroo method as a neuroprotection tool
Among the interventions with the greatest positive impact, specialists highlight skin-to-skin contact, also known as the kangaroo method. In this practice, the baby is placed in direct contact with the skin of their mother or father, receiving familiar sensory stimuli such as smell, the heartbeat, and the body heat of their caregivers, which give them security, stability, reduce their stress, and reinforce the emotional bond.
"Other valuable everyday actions are added to this as well, such as holding them with your hands, talking to them, singing to them, or feeding them with breast milk. All of these are interactions that help to regulate their physiological and emotional responses and to reduce the tension associated with hospital admission," Arnáez points out.
In addition, "scientific studies link skin-to-skin contact with improvements in brain organization and functioning, higher quality of sleep, benefits for the immune system, and better breastfeeding outcomes," recalls NeNe's president.
The duration of these practices is also decisive. "The available data indicate that their positive effects increase when they are maintained over prolonged periods, and the recommendations included in clinical guidelines place the time associated with the greatest benefits at around six to eight hours per day," the neonatologist emphasizes.
This closeness also generates a mutual benefit. The baby finds references of security in the constant presence of their parents and, at the same time, their active involvement in the care and clinical progress of their son or daughter strengthens mothers' and fathers' confidence in their own abilities. "Feeling accompanied and recognized in their role also helps to relieve the emotional burden that comes with having a child admitted to the hospital and facilitates the building of a secure affective bond," points out NeNe's vice president.
Nursing, key to integrating families into the neonatal ICU
For this family involvement to be real and effective, the NeNe Foundation considers it essential to have the commitment of healthcare teams and, very especially, of specialist nurses in Pediatrics. Because of their continued presence and their support for the newborn and for those close to them, these professionals become a basic pillar for teaching, guiding, and accompanying parents in the progressive assumption of the baby's care.
From NeNe Nursing, nurses Maite Montes and Nuria Herranz herself highlight the importance of designing accompaniment itineraries tailored to the circumstances of each family and to the degree of maturation of each newborn. "Training and professional support allow families to learn to interpret their signals, recognize their needs, and participate safely in the different interventions," explains Montes.
For the foundation, this family-centered care model requires adequate care conditions. Nene calls for open neonatal units that ensure unrestricted access for parents and other close members, such as brothers and sisters, grandmothers and grandfathers.
Likewise, it advocates having spaces that facilitate the family’s staying together with the baby and encourage physical contact from the very first moments, always adapted to the clinical situation of each premature infant. The organization also considers it essential to strengthen Nursing staffing and extend specific training in family-centered care to all professionals involved in neonatal care.