Nurse/parent role perceptions in care of neonatal intensive care unit infants: implications for the advanced practice nurse.

This study compared parent and nurse perceptions of the nurse's roles regarding responsibilities toward infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). It also examined the attitudes of nurses and parents regarding the extent to which parents should participate in the care of their infants in the NICU, as well as the role of the advanced practice nurse (APN). The convenience sample of 25 parents of infants in the NICU and 35 nurses who cared for the infants was surveyed regarding perceptions of nurses and parents about nurse responsibilities and parent roles in the NICU. Results suggest parents and nurses have different perceptions about role expectations and that nurses perceive themselves to lack comfort and knowledge in providing support to parents. The findings support a role of the APN as fostering a nursing NICU philosophy to facilitate role transition for parents of infants in the NICU.