Improving Staff Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Providing Psychosocial Support to NICU Parents Through an Online Education Course

Background: Provider-parent communication is a critical determinant of how neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) parents cope, yet staff feel inadequately trained in communication techniques; many parents are not satisfied with the support they receive from hospital providers. Purpose: This study evaluated whether NICU staff would demonstrate improved knowledge and attitudes about providing psychosocial support to parents after taking an online course. Methods: After providing demographic information, staff at 2 NICUs took a 33-item survey both before and after taking a 7-module online course "Caring for Babies and Their Families," and again at 6-month follow-up. Scores (means +/- standard deviation) from all time periods were compared and effect sizes calculated for each of the course modules. Results: NICU staff participants (n = 114) included nurses (88%), social workers (7%), physicians (4%), and occupational therapists (1%). NICU staff showed significant improvement in both knowledge and attitudes in all modules after taking the course, and improvements in all module subscores remained significant at the 6-month follow-up mark. Night staff and staff with less experience had lower pretest scores on several items, which improved on posttest. Implications for Research: Future research should evaluate course efficacy across NICU disciplines beyond nursing, impact on staff performance, and whether parent satisfaction with care is improved.