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Adolescent mothers in the NICU: how much do they understand?

Journal of Perinatology volume 30, pages 286–290 (2010)Cite this article

Abstract

Objective:

We aimed to characterize adolescent parents’ understanding of their infant's diagnosis, treatment and illness severity in the intensive care unit.

Study Design:

Adolescent mothers were interviewed and neonatal medical records were reviewed.

Result:

Forty-two teens were interviewed. All had spoken with providers: 86% with nurses, 60% with physicians and 45% with both. Most teens could name their infant's diagnosis and treatment but often underestimated the illness severity. Teens reported reluctance to ask providers to clarify technical language. Those who said they spoke with a physician were less likely to understand their infant's illness severity than those who said they had not spoken with a physician (48 vs 82%). Parents’ knowledge was better if physicians had documented explicit efforts to communicate with parents.

Conclusion:

Teens often underestimated the critical nature of their infant's illness. Future work should target adolescent willingness to ask questions and provider ability to accurately gauge parent knowledge.

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Acknowledgements

We thank all the parents who agreed to share their personal experiences with us in the midst of their infant's hospitalization. Dr Boss received funding to support this project from the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine as part of the Year-Long Intensive Mentoring Program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    R D Boss

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    P K Donohue

  3. Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    P K Donohue

  4. Division of General Internal Medicine, Section of Palliative Care and Medical Ethics, Montefiore University Hospital, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    R M Arnold

Authors
  1. R D Boss
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  2. P K Donohue
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  3. R M Arnold
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to R D Boss.

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Boss, R., Donohue, P. & Arnold, R. Adolescent mothers in the NICU: how much do they understand?. J Perinatol 30, 286–290 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2009.160

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