Parents’ Experiences After Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Discharge: A Qualitative Descriptive Study

Background/Objectives: Transition from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) to home involves emotional adjustment and increasing parental responsibility for infant care. This study explored parents’ experiences of this transition, focusing on emotional experiences, perceived continuity of care, and support needs.

Methods

A qualitative descriptive study included 38 parents representing 34 preterm or medically complex infants discharged from a single NICU in an Italian tertiary children’s hospital. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted within 12 months of discharge, audio-recorded, and transcribed in Italian. Predominantly inductive thematic analysis examined shared meanings and variations across parents’ retrospective interview accounts. Recruitment was time-limited; neither saturation nor information power was formally assessed.