Abstract

FREITAS, Juliana de O.  and  CAMARGO, Climene L. de. Discussing newborn and family care in the kangaroo mother method. Rev. bras. crescimento desenvolv. hum. [online]. 2006, vol.16, n.2, pp. 88-95. ISSN 0104-1282.

The permanence of premature or very low weight newborn babies for a long time in neonatal units until they reach the ideal weight for hospital discharge characterizes a situation that can bring implications for the mother's and her baby's health, such as breastfeeding discouragement, breaking of the affective bond and increased risk of infections. With the Kangaroo Mother Method (KMM), the premature newborn and the low weight babies have direct contact with their mothers as soon as they present stabilized clinical conditions. The skin-to-skin contact is initiated, and the baby stays close to the mother in a bag similar to that of a kangaroo. In the implementation process of the Kangaroo Mother Method in Brazil, the nursing sector has been contributing for the success of the program providing assistance based on involvement, dedication, and care humanization, thus bringing more proximity between family, premature baby and health staff. This article discusses the nursing care given to the newborn and the family in the KMM, and the difficulties found in the insertion of mother and child in this assistance method. The present study also intends to reflect on the importance of the nursing professionals' performance in the KMM program, as well as to point out some difficulties in the application of the method.

Keywords : Kangaroo Mother Method; Premature newborn; Neonatal nursing care.

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