DEVELOPMENTAL CARE OF PRETERM INFANTS

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In the "Developmental Care of Preterrn Newborns", Vida Health Communications, Inc. will produce and evaluate the effectiveness of media programs to train parents of premature infants and professionals working in Newborn Intensive Care Units (NICUs). Over 400,000 infants are born prematurely in the U.S. each year. Over 50 percent are diagnosed with emotional, behavioral or learning disorders by the time they reach school age. Individualized, developmentally supportive care in the NICU has been demonstrated to improve neurological outcomes of preterm infants. Drawing on the specific advantages of several media and new brain imaging technologies, Developmental Care of Preterm Newborns will disseminate state-of-the-art information about the neurobehavioral competencies and care requirements of preterm babies. This information is expected to shape care delivery in the NICU and to help parents understand their infants? developmental competencies and vulnerabilities. Program scripts will be complete by the conclusion of Phase 1. Evaluation will include collecting and analyzing information about the NICU environment, conducting focus groups to gather information about professional responses to the program scripts; and refining the Phase 2 study design. Incorporating recommended revisions, the programs will be produced in Phase 2 and then evaluated using a quasi-experimental, pre-test, post-test design with a comparison group. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The numbers of NICUs (984) and of preterm newborns (400,000) are growing annually. "The Developmental Care of Preterm Newborns" will be marketed to: Vida's existing database of more than 40,000 health educators; neonatologists; pediatricians; neonatal nurses; developmental specialists; early interventionists; occupational, respiratory and physical therapists.