6131 Evolution of self-reported parental mental health measures through their premature baby’s NICU admission

Objectives To explore the change in self-reported stress, anxiety and depression in parents of babies born less than 33 weeks gestation from admission to discharge home. Methods Through sequential recruitment, parents of babies born less than 33 weeks gestation at a level 3 and level 2 NICU were asked to complete the Parental Stressor Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (PSS:NICU),¹ Personal Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ9)² and Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD7)³ every 3 weeks during their baby's hospitalisation. Descriptive statistics and T-tests were used to analyse data. The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee (Ref:22/EM/0140) and informed written consent was obtained. Results 31 of the 35 recruited parents (20 fathers & 15 mothers) completed at least 1 set of questionnaires. The infants' median (range) gestational age at birth was 26⁺⁴ (23⁺³ to 32⁺⁰) weeks gestation and the length of stay was 86.4 (20–213) days. The median birthweight was 885g (548–1990g). At admission, the median PSS:NICU score was 72.5 (range 39–155), GAD7 was 6.5 (0–21) and PHQ9 was 7.0 (0–22) as per table 1. There was no difference between paternal and maternal scores via the PSS:NICU (p=0.595), GAD7 (p=0.565) or PHQ9 (p= 0.594). There was no correlation between the parents' admission questionnaire scores and their infants' CRIBBE 2 score, birth weight or gestational age. A comparison of PSS:NICU scores from questionnaires completed in NICU vs HDU/SCBU revealed no significant difference (p=0.39). Mothers of sons had significantly higher depression symptoms (PHQ9 questionnaire) at admission compared to mothers of daughters (p=0.019). This was not seen in fathers for symptoms of anxiety or depression. A paired analysis between the admission and discharge results showed no difference in PSS:NICU scores (p= 0.166). However, there was a significant reduction in GAD7 scores from a mean of 9.4 (moderate symptoms) to 6.1 (mild symptoms; p= 0.015) and also in PHQ9 scores with the mean dropping from 8.9 to 3.7 (mild symptoms; p< 0.001). Through the hospitalisation, 'Relationship and Parental Role' was the biggest stressor and ' Staff Behaviour and Communication' was the lowest source of stress as per figure 1. Conclusion Stress symptoms persisted throughout the hospital stay despite improving depression and anxiety symptoms. This highlights the need for ongoing psychological and staff support for parents throughout the hospital stay. Methods to mitigate stress caused by 'Relationship and Parental Role' may significantly improve parental wellbeing. References Funk, Kasper. Res. Nurs. Health. Miles 1992. Spitzer, et al. Arch. Intern. Med 2006. Kroenke, Spitzer, Williams. J. Gen. Intern. Med 2001.