Parents under Kangaroo Mother Care Method reluctant to commence hospital discharge: a thematic analysis

Parents of premature or low birth weight babies inColombia receive training in the Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) methodfrom the hospital, to empower themselves in the care of their childrenand achieve an early discharge. If this is not possible, babies will havea higher risk of infections, a longer separation time from parents andhigher hospitalization costs. Objective: To describe the experiences ofkangaroo parents reluctant to be discharged from the hospital in order toidentify and modify possible mistakes in the in-hospital KMC adaptationphase. Method: Pilot focus group with five kangaroo parents reluctantto graduate. A thematic analysis of the transcription was done. Results:Parents experienced feelings of poor empowerment that did not improvewith the training provided, based on talks and observation; this, togetherwith the perception of the expertise of health personnel, may lead themto consider staying in the newborn unit for the safety of their babies. Athome, repeated and direct exposure to baby care seems to build moreconfidence. Conclusions: Increasing parents’ direct exposure to theirbabies’ care before discharge would improve their hospital experience,their confidence, the quality of care they can provide, and allow an earlydischarge.