Impact of a nurse-led empowerment programme on home-based care for preterm infants: A quantitative study

TL;DR

A nurse-led program significantly improved home-based care knowledge and practices for mothers of preterm infants.

Contribution

The study demonstrates the effectiveness of a nurse-led empowerment program in enhancing maternal care for preterm infants.

Findings

Maternal knowledge scores increased significantly from 27.31 to 42.11 (p < 0.001).

82% of mothers achieved adequate knowledge and practice after the program.

Abstract

The lack of adequate home-based care for mothers of preterm infants poses significant challenges in maternal and infant health,
requiring effective interventions to empower mothers with essential knowledge and support. Therefore, it is of interest to assess the
impact of the Nurse-Led Mothers Empowerment Programme (NLMEP) on improving home-based care for mothers of preterm infants. A quasi-
experimental pre-test post-test design was used, with 100 mothers selected from a tertiary care hospital in Chennai, India. Results
showed significant improvements in maternal knowledge, practices, stress, fatigue and social support. The knowledge score increased from
27.31 to 42.11 (p < 0.001) and 82% of mothers demonstrated adequate knowledge and practice. The lack of adequate home-based care for
mothers of preterm infants poses significant challenges in maternal and infant health, requiring effective interventions to empower
mothers with essential knowledge and support.