JBI database of systematic reviews and implementation reports
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JBI Database System Rev Implement Rep · Dec 2017
RevieweHealth interventions for parents in neonatal intensive care units: a systematic review.
As technology becomes increasingly more advanced, particularly video technology and interactive learning platforms, some neonatal intensive care units are embracing electronic health (eHealth) technologies to enhance and expand their family-centered care environments. Despite the emergence of eHealth, there has been a lack of systematic evaluation of its effectiveness thus far. ⋯ While heterogeneity across studies precluded meta-analysis, consistent trends across all studies examining parental acceptance of eHealth interventions indicate that parents are willing to accept eHealth interventions as part of their neonatal intensive care, suggesting that the incorporation and evaluation of eHealth interventions in the neonatal intensive care unit setting is warranted. Further high quality studies are needed with larger sample sizes to detect changes in outcomes. As eHealth intervention studies move beyond feasibility and implementation, there is a demand for randomized control trials to examine the effect of eHealth interventions on parent and neonatal outcomes compared to usual care. Future studies should consider reporting of outcomes using standardized measures which would allow comparison across eHealth interventions in subsequent reviews.