GPS (Giving Parents Support): Parent Navigation After NICU Discharge

Completed · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Premature Birth of Newborn, Family, Immature Newborn, Newborn Morbidity, Infant Newborn Disease

In brief

BACKGROUND: Annually \>400,000 US newborns require neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) care.1/3 will require ongoing or specialty care after discharge. Some NICU graduates can be classified as children with special health care needs (CSHCN) who will require health and related services of a type or amount beyond that required by children generally. NICU parents report increased anxiety and stress during their stay and transition home from the NICU. Short-term peer-to -peer programs during hospitalization decrease stress, anxiety and depression for mothers, however, no studies have evaluated the effects of long term post-discharge peer support. Children's National (CN) provides medical home services to CSHCN through its Parent Navigator Program (PNP). Parent Navigators (PNs) are CSHCN parents who provide peer emotional support, access to community resources, and assistance with navigating complicated health systems. NICU graduates and their caregivers may benefit from support provided by PNs after discharge. No data regarding the impact of PNs on patient and family outcomes of the NICU graduate are available. OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of a PNP on a parent's self-efficacy, stress, anxiety, depression; infant health care utilization, and immunization status. METHODS: 300 NICU graduates will be randomized to receive either PN for 12 months (intervention group) or usual care (comparison group). Baseline data at 1 week, 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after discharge will be collected from caregivers in both groups including scales for self-efficacy, stress, anxiety, and depression, infant healthcare utilization and immunization status. Outcomes will be compared at 12 months. PATIENT OUTCOMES (PROJECTED) The study outcomes are parental self-efficacy, stress, anxiety, and depression; infant health care utilization and immunization status. ANTICIPATED IMPACT Prior studies utilizing small samples have suggested that peer support in the NICU can reduce anxiety and depression in caregivers. It is unclear whether peer support after discharge, when a family is faced with the total care of their child without structured supports, can significantly impact parents' ability to care for their child. The investigators anticipate that this simple intervention will increase self-efficacy in caregivers, reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, in turn resulting in improved health outcomes for their child.

Key facts

Study ID: NCT02643472
Run by: Children's National Research Institute
People needed: 300
Starts: 2016-01-01
Expected to finish: 2018-03-01
Last updated by the study team: 2019-08-05

Who can join

Age: any. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

parents of neonates receiving care in the Children's National NICU

You may not qualify if…

infant is not being discharged with a custodial parent (e.g., in custody of Child Protection Services)
neither parent can complete an interview in English,
the parent who will be providing most of the care is younger than 18 years of age,
those with insufficient knowledge of English to participate in the telephone interviews
the parent/caregiver has plans to leave the District of Columbia (DC) metropolitan area permanently within the following year.

Where it is running

Children's National Medical Center — Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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