Parental Stressors in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Loja, Ecuador

The admission of a child to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) represents a vital event that affects family dynamics and well-being in a disruptive way. The most affected are the parents, who tend to feel helpless, guilty and scared, being more vulnerable to suffering from anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress. For this reason, a descriptive and cross-sectional study was carried out, with the objective of identifying parental stressors in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the Isidro Ayora Hospital (Loja, Ecuador). A total of 102 mothers and 20 fathers participated in the study, responding to a 28-item questionnaire based on the Miles and Funks Maternal Stress Scale. The results showed that the main stressors were the appearance and behavior of the newborn, followed by communication with the health personnel, the environment of the unit and the role of the father with the newborn. Actions are proposed to reduce the presence of parental stressors in the NICU.