Solutions

Solutions powered by
Learn More.
Frame 586 (1)

Quality Manager formerly known as abaqis®

Mitigate risk and elevate your quality of care. Improving both clinical and business outcomes starts with a smarter, more integrated approach to regulatory training, continuing education and quality management.

Learn More

NEW TO THE STORE

hStream Content Marketplace

Connecting you to the Best Content. Access to 75 Partners and 35,000+ Courses in our Industry-Leading Marketplace. Streamline content purchasing, updates, hosting and connectivity for your organizational needs.

NurseGrid Learn

Online store for Clinical Learners. Individual CE Credit and industry products for Clinical Learners are now available through NurseGrid Learn (Beta). Explore our robust collection of courses that provides an unparalleled level of flexibility and choice.

Practitioner Courses

Meet the DEA's new requirement under the Medication Access and Training Expansion (MATE) Act in an online, high-quality and self-paced 8-hour DEA MATE Act course specifically designed for practitioners, including Physicians, PAs, NPs, Pharmacists, Dentists and others.

LATEST & POPULAR

BLOG

Join Us at Thrive24: The Ultimate HealthStream Credentialing User Group Conference!
BLOG

Gen Z Enters the Workforce: How Healthcare Can Adapt Training Programs for the Next Generation
BLOG

Telehealth: From Pandemic Tool to Preferred Option
On-Demand Webinar

State of the Industry: What’s Next for Healthcare Quality & Safety in 2024?
CUSTOMER STORY

Quantifiable results highlight switch to jane®
ARTICLE

10 Trends for 2024: Absorbing New Technology, Facing New Realities, and Solving Old Problems

< HealthStream Resources

Blog: Neonatal care during the COVID-19 pandemic

Neonatal care during the COVID-19 pandemic

September 14, 2021
September 14, 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic is having a major impact across the healthcare continuum. Much attention was initially paid to the outsized effect of the virus within the elderly population, especially in the mortality rate among those living in a residential care environment. Now that vaccines are widely available, we've turned our attention to the unvaccinated, whether by choice or due to age, given that the youngest members of the population are not considered to be eligible for inoculation. As we continue to navigate through the pandemic, consider the immense threats that COVID-19 brings into the world of pre-term deliveries and neonatal care.

COVID-19 restrictions conflict with standard neonatal care

A 2021 article in the Lancet about a neonatal care study reminds readers that "Preterm birth is the leading cause of death under five years of age. Worldwide, more than one in ten infants, an estimated 15 million, are born preterm every year. Together with sick and low birthweight infants, these newborns require specialized care to prevent mortality, support adequate growth and development, and to reduce the risk of morbidities in later life." The same article warns that in terms of these infants, "their needs have not been considered adequately during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has created exceptional challenges and disrupted healthcare provision across the globe even more."

The negative impact of COVID-19 precautions

The Lancet also shares that "implemented measures have resulted in a limitation of some of the core elements of IFCDC [infant and family-centered developmental care], such as parental presence and family access for infants admitted to NICUs, as parents were routinely separated from their newborn. These restrictions have a deleterious effect on developing infants and their parents. According to the Lancet, "Recent findings indicate that the use of personal protective equipment, including face masks in neonatal care, as well as separation from the parents, alters parents' as well as the healthcare professionals' ability to communicate with the infant, potentially impacting the development of speech, language and communication." Ultimately, the study authors "call for a zero-separation policy of parents and infants to avoid unnecessary suffering of the youngest and most vulnerable members of society."

Education for neonatal care

HealthStream's maternal care training programs focus on this particularly difficult aspect of healthcare by providing your staff with the training and resources they need to move the needle on safe, quality care. Learn more about NOEP and other maternal care training programs available through HealthStream.