Publication date: Sep 19, 2024
Attendance to neonatal follow-up programs presents a significant factor associated with positive long-term outcomes of high-risk infants. Strategies to maximize participation benefit not only future interventions’ effectiveness but also healthcare systems and society. While a number of studies have focused on attrition or loss to follow-up, no studies have focused on the contributive risk factors to abstaining from neonatal follow-up programs specifically during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to reveal the main factors linked to non-compliance in a neonatal follow-up program of a tertiary hospital. In this ambidirectional observational study, data from 1137 high-risk neonates who participated in a hospital follow-up program were collected (573 before and 564 after the COVID-19 pandemic). The study sample was grouped to three groups: G1 (N = 831), who maintained participation in the program; G2 (N = 196), who discontinued; and G3 (N = 110), who never visited the outpatient clinics. Data were obtained from the hospital’s Systems Applications and Products (SAP) Software and a structured questionnaire, answered by parents of newborns either discontinuing (G2) or not attending (G3) the follow-up program through a telephone contact. The most frequently reported reason for discontinuance before the pandemic onset was the parents’ perception of no necessity to maintain participation (44. 12%). During the COVID-19 pandemic, provider-related barriers to maintaining hospital access, inability to provide high-quality services (37. 14%), and feelings of fear and insecurity (18. 5%) emerged as factors for non-attendance. Citizenship and morbidity (respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis, necrotic enterocolitis, jaundice) acted as incentives to join the follow-up program during both study periods. Multiple regression analysis showed that multiple-gestation infants had higher odds of maintaining participation during the COVID-19 period (OR, 4. 04; CI, 1. 09-14. 9). Understanding the potential impact of COVID-19 and the transformative changes in neonatal follow-up clinics is crucial for applying compliance strategies. Removing barriers to maintain family participation can lead to increased attendance rates.
Open Access PDF
| Concepts | Keywords |
|---|---|
| Covid | attendance |
| Increased | COVID-19 pandemic |
| Neonatal | follow up program |
| Outpatient | neonate |
| Parents |
Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | MESH | COVID-19 Pandemic |
| disease | IDO | quality |
| disease | MESH | morbidity |
| disease | MESH | respiratory distress syndrome |
| disease | MESH | sepsis |
| disease | MESH | enterocolitis |
| disease | MESH | jaundice |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Coenzyme M |
| disease | MESH | premature births |
| disease | MESH | Premature infants |
| disease | IDO | intervention |
| disease | MESH | encephalopathy |
| disease | MESH | convulsions |
| disease | MESH | infections |
| disease | MESH | syndromes |
| disease | MESH | shock |
| disease | MESH | hypoglycemia |
| disease | MESH | hyperbilirubinemia |
| disease | IDO | blood |
| disease | MESH | metabolic diseases |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Trestolone |
| disease | MESH | education level |
| disease | MESH | gestational diabetes |
| disease | MESH | hypertension |
| drug | DRUGBANK | Acetylsalicylic acid |
| disease | MESH | intrauterine growth restriction |
| disease | MESH | bronchopulmonary dysplasia |
| disease | MESH | necrotizing enterocolitis |
| disease | IDO | country |
| disease | MESH | Death |
| disease | MESH | Tumor |
| disease | MESH | Data Source |
| disease | MESH | Gestational Hypertension |