Charlotte Gibson

Citation

Thesis Title
Babies and Babble: Parents' Experiences of the Neonatal Unit and the Role of the Babble App

Neonatal unit admission is a distressing experience for many parents with premature, sick, or small infants. To support these parents, an informational app called Babble has been developed. However, there is little information available pertaining to the New Zealand neonatal experience and Babble's related impact. Miss Gibson investigated New Zealand parents’ experiences of the neonatal unit and the Babble app's effect, through both quantitative and qualitative means. Her findings suggest that although parents did not see the Babble app as impactful on their experiences of distress, perceived self-efficacy, or how informed they felt, they nevertheless found it useful as a supplementary tool to staff support. When parents felt informed, their distress was reduced, and this relationship was mediated by parental self-efficacy. This indicates the need for further informational support and for neonatal staff to provide clear, consistent communication to aid parents’ confidence, which in turn supports positive outcomes for the infant.

Supervisors
Associate Professor Kirsty Ross
Dr Matt Williams