Medical Compliance and Adherence Post-Discharge from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

According to a review of international literature, approximately 10 percent of all newborn infants are admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU). The length of stay may range from hours and days to weeks and months. Clinical conditions vary in severity, including transient and relatively mild maladies to more severe disorders, including congenital illnesses, extreme prematurity, and peri—and post-natal complications. Each infant is unique as is one’s medical history, course in the NICU, and subsequent prognosis. The last is related to a myriad of factors: medical conditions, duration of stay, communication between the medical staff and family, and the continuity and compliance of care post-discharge. Essential to compliance is mutual trust and respect between the medical staff and the family. Many factors influence this relationship, which often proves fragile. Success, however, has a significant impact on prognosis and compliance. In this chapter we shed light on factors that affect compliance with medical care both during the peri—and post-natal hospital course as well as following discharge. Of paramount importance, in our opinion is: (a) providing parents with coping skills in accepting the medical challenges that their infant faces, and (b) fostering a healthy and productive relationship between the infant’s family and the medical staff.