Effect of Telenursing on Level of Anxiety in Parents of Hospitalised Premature Neonates in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Introduction: Hospitalisation in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) as a closed chamber, separates neonates from their parents and causes anxiety in the parent's mind. Nurses can provide a great volume of information in a short period by telenursing. Aim: To evaluate the effects of telenursing through phone calls on the anxiety levels in parents with neonates, hospitalised in the neonatal intensive care unit. Materials and Methods: This before-after Quasi-experimental study, with a control group, was conducted from November 2018 to April 2019 among parents of premature neonates admitted in NICU of Mofid Children's Medical Centre, Tehran, Iran. They were selected through the convenience sampling method, 60 individuals were selected for this research, and they were divided into 30 participants for intervention and control groups. In the intervention group, 15 telephonic conversations between parents and nurses were done totally for 15 days. During these phone contacts, the researcher provided information to one of the parents about the neonate's respiration, recent vital signs, consciousness level, sleeping rhythm, feeding. The data was collected by using the self-report Beck Anxiety Inventory, and socio-demographics questionnaires. The Beck Anxiety Inventory was filled out once before the intervention and then after phone calls on the first day and fifth, tenth and fifteenth day of admission in the intervention groups. This was also filled out in control groups and were compared in both the groups. Results: The findings indicated that there was a significant difference in terms of anxiety in the intervention group before (51.80 +/- 11.2) and after (25.1 +/- 3.4). There was a significant statistical difference between the intervention group and the control group in the fifth, tenth and fifteenth day of hospitalisation (p=0.001). The anxiety level in the control group before (52.45 +/- 11.9) and after (50.43 +/- 10.18) intervention showed no significant difference. Conclusion: The telenursing intervention was effective in reducing anxiety in parents who had their premature neonates in NICU.