Purpose
This study aimed to identify the infant-rearing experiences of parents during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and provide foundational data for the development of infant-rearing support programs during pandemic situations. Methods: Convergent mixed methods were used to better understand the research outcomes by converging both quantitative and qualitative data. A total of 149 parents with infant-rearing experiences during the pandemic responded to a self-report survey, and 10 parents participated in the interviews. Data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s method, descriptive statistics, t-test, one-way analysis of variance, the Scheffé test, Pearson correlation coefficients, and hierarchical regression. Results: Analysis of qualitative data yielded the following three categories: five theme clusters, ten themes, and thirty-nine sub-themes. The factors influencing infant-rearing behavior were nuclear family (β=.34, p<.001) and rearing stress (β=-.39, p<.001). The explanatory power of the regression equation was 26.6%. Conclusion: Infectious disease disasters, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, can quickly alter infant-rearing conditions, causing heightened parental anxiety. This may affect infant-rearing behaviors and hinder healthy infant development. Future research should develop a comprehensive tool to measure holistic health-related parenting behaviors across the different stages of child development. Additionally, pediatric nurse practitioners can play an active role in educating parents, supporting parenting, and promoting healthy infant development in their communities, making pediatric nurse practitioners a highly relevant and necessary healthcare profession during infectious disease disasters. Thus, there is a need to improve institutions and build infrastructure at the national level to support them.

Citations

• Trends in Prevalent Cases and Disability‐Adjusted Life‐Years of Depressive Disorders Worldwide: Findings From the Global Burden of Disease Study From 1990 to 2021
  Xiao-dan Chen, Feng Li, Hui Zuo, Feng Zhu, Ruhai Bai
  Depression and Anxiety.2025;[Epub]     CrossRef

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in Korea remains a poorly-understood subject for both professionals and the public. Recent reports have emphasized ethnic differences in SIDS rates, suggesting that making adjustments in child-rearing practices may contribute substantially to SIDS reduction. Two of the three major risk factors for SIDS-vulnerability of the infant and exogenous factors-need to be understood in particular depth due to their broad scope and sociocultural grounding. This paper presents substantial issues regarding preterm birth and male gender on infants’ vulnerability to SIDS in Korea. Practices of caring for healthy infants are addressed in the context of sleeping practices, including sleeping position, bedding arrangements, sleeping on the floor, the back-to-sleep position, high indoor temperatures and ondol floor heating, and swaddling. Professional and social awareness about how to reduce SIDS should be raised by promoting a better understanding of risk factors in the context of ethnic and cultural variations in child-rearing practices.

Citations

• Development of an educational intervention program for infant safe sleep practices in Korea: a methodological study
  Jung Ae Cho, Young Mee Ahn, Min Sohn, Ok Kyung Ham, Min Kyung Lim, Hyun Young Koo
  Child Health Nursing Research.2026; 32(1): 16.     CrossRef
• Analysis of sleep-related sudden unexpected infant deaths and sleep environment factors: clinical experience from a single tertiary medical center
  Mi Ae Chu, Jung Eun Kwon
  Pediatric Emergency Medicine Journal.2025; 12(3): 133.     CrossRef
• A Qualitative Study on Korean Mothers’ Dysfunctional Beliefs and Meaning Structures Regarding Their Experiences With Infant Sleep Problems
  Solbi Kang, Seockhoon Cheong, Sooyeon Suh
  Journal of Sleep Medicine.2023; 20(3): 175.     CrossRef
• Survey of Korean daycare personnel on safe sleep practices related to sudden unexplained infant death: a cross-sectional exploratory study
  Young Mee Ahn, Jung Ae Cho
  Child Health Nursing Research.2022; 28(4): 299.     CrossRef
• Cultural variation in factors associated with sudden infant death during sleep
  Young Mee Ahn, Kyung-moo Yang, Hong Il Ha, Jung Ae Cho
  BMC Pediatrics.2021;[Epub]     CrossRef
• Knowledge on Sudden Unexplained Infant Death-related Safe Sleep Practices and Infant Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation in Pediatric Nurses
  Jung Ae Cho, Min Sohn, Sangmi Lee, Young Mee Ahn
  Child Health Nursing Research.2020; 26(4): 454.     CrossRef

Purpose
The aim of this study was to analyze Neonatal Intensive Care Unit nurses’ behaviors while soothing newborns with bronchopulmonary dysplasia.
Methods
An observational study was used to assess nurses’soothing behaviors. Data were collected from September, 2012 to March, 2013 using an audio-video recording system. Participants were eight babies and 12 nurses caring for those babies. After obtaining parental permission, the overall process of each episode from nurses’engagement in soothing to the end of soothing was recorded. Then a researcher interviewed each participating nurse. Data from 18 episodes were transcribed as verbal and nonverbal nursing behaviors and then categorized by two researchers.
Results
There were 177 observed soothing behaviors which were classified with the five sensory-based categories (tactile, oral, visual, auditory, vestibular). Most frequently observed soothing behavior was ‘Gently talking’ followed by ‘Removing irritant’, and ‘Providing non-nutritive sucking’. Nurses’ perceived soothing behaviors were similar to the observed soothing behaviors except for ‘Gently talking’.
Conclusion
Nurses used diverse and mixed soothing behaviors as well as recognizing those behaviors as essential nursing skills. Nurses’ soothing behaviors identified in this study can be used to comfort babies and to enhance their developmental potential in accordance with individual characterstics or cues.

Citations

• Factors influencing nursing care competences in neonatal intensive care units: Generalized equation estimation analysis
  Eun Sook Kim, Hyoyeong Kim, Heemoon Lim, Jungwoo Hwang, Hyejung Lee
  Journal of Neonatal Nursing.2025; 31(3): 101668.     CrossRef

PURPOSE
To identify the perception and practices of kangaroo care in nurses and doctors working in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) in Korea.
METHODS
One hundred forty-nine nurses and nineteen doctors working in the NICU from six university hospitals completed a survey questionnaire.
RESULTS
Most agreed that Kangaroo care promoted attachment and parental confidence as well as physical health of the infant. However, nurses and doctors showed a negative perception in providing kangaroo care for premature infants under 1,000 grams or within several hours after birth. Major barriers for kangaroo care were worrying about extubation and safety problems of premature infants. Married or senior nurses showed a more positive perception than others. Also nurses who worked in hospitals where kangaroo care was provided had a lower barrier perception than other nurses.
CONCLUSION
Nurses and doctors working in NICU worried about adverse effects of kangaroo care even though they perceived positive effects. Standard education programs and manuals should be developed before dissemination of kangaroo care in Korea.

Citations

• A Mother’s Experience of Hospitalization of Her Newborn in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
  Euna Choi, Youngeun Lee
  Child Health Nursing Research.2018; 24(4): 407.     CrossRef
• Knowledge and Beliefs about Kangaroo Care among Nursing Students
  So-Young Park, Sang-Mi Koo, Sun-Mi Choi, Tae-Im Kim
  Child Health Nursing Research.2016; 22(1): 61.     CrossRef
• Perception and Barriers to Kangaroo-Mother Care Among Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Nurses
  Sun Kyung Jeong, Tae-Im Kim
  Child Health Nursing Research.2016; 22(4): 299.     CrossRef
• Effects of Kangaroo Care on Physical Development and Adaptation of External Environment of Prematurity, and Maternal Role Confidence who Delivered Premature Infants
  Ji-Won Lee, Yong-Sook Eo, Jung Hwa Han
  Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperati.2016; 17(12): 128.     CrossRef
• Efficacy and Safety of Kangaroo Mother Care in Preterm Infants in Korea
  Joo Hee Lim, Jeong-Eun Shin, Soon Min Lee, Ho Sun Eun, Min Soo Park, Kook In Park, Ran Namgung
  Korean Journal of Perinatology.2015; 26(4): 305.     CrossRef

PURPOSE
This descriptive study was conducted to illuminate, from the nursing point of view, the infant care act, which was revised recently and to suggest a desirable direction of its enforcement decree and regulations.
METHOD
This study was carried out through literature review and a collection of child care experts' opinions.
RESULTS
The most remarkable changes in infant care act and the suggestions for a desirable direction of its enforcement decree and regulations are as follows: It can be said that the law on 'health', 'nutrition' and 'safety' for a child care center was improved to the level of act from the level of enforcement regulation. In the enforcement regulation on the distribution of nurses in child care centers, it is desirable that nurse's aids are excluded. It is recommended that every child care center should have a nurse or a health care manager and/or an emergency caretaker. In the curriculum for child care, the subjects on child health care should be an essential subject, not elective.
CONCLUSION
Child care act should be reformed under the discipline of first priority to child health. Every nurse and nursing professor should have interest and earnestness in child care and conduct related studies.

This study is designed to compare differences of the infant mothers' nursing educational needs between primipara and multipara. And also this study will provide the basic data for the development of Infant care educational programs based on personal characteristics. The subjects of this study were 71 infant-mothers who just experienced delivery. They were selected from a collage hospital and a obstetric hospital in D city, Korea. The tool used in this study was educational need scale developed by Choe, SeonJeong(2000), and modified by researchers. The subjects were requested to check complete the questionnaires by self-report method at the time of hospital discharge. The data were collected from February 7 to April 10, 2001. and were analysed by descriptive statistics, mean, std deviation, t-test, ANOVA with SPSS 10.0. The results of this study were as follows ; 1. The differences of the infant mothers' nursing educational needs were not significantly between primipara and multipara. 2. In the each category of the infant mothers' nursing educational needs, we could see the differences between primipara and multipara as following ; Infant care(t=2.803, p=.007), Attachment between parents and infant (t=2.442, p=.017). 3. In accordance with general characteristics, the infant mothers' nursing educational needs differed significantly according to religion in primipara and according to satisfaction of marriage in multipara. 4. In accordance with obsterical characteristics, the infant mothers' nursing educational needs differed significantly according to places of postpartum care in primipara. In conclusion, this study confirmed that the nursing educational needs of the mothers did not show significant difference between primipara and multipara. However, two subareas' parts of the infant mothers' nursing educational needs, infant care and attachment between parents and infant showed significant difference between primipara and multipara. And the infant mothers' nursing educational needs differed significantly between primipara and multipara according to several personal characteristics. Therefore the results of this study might give some real data for the development of the Infant Care Programs based on personal characteristics.

This study was designed to compare the educational needs and satisfactory about infant care of the mothers in the Post-partum Care Center for development of the educational program. The subjects for this study were 100 mothers in the Post-partum Care Center in Seoul and Buchon. The data were collected during the period from Feb. to March, 2000. The Educational Need and satisfactory for Infant Care was measured by questionnaire that has developed by researchers. The data were analysed by descriptive statistics, paired t-test using SPSS PC+ WIN.The results were as fellow; 1) The educational needs of the mothers in the Post-partum Care Center were high (mean=4.32). 2)The satisfactory of the mothers in the Post-partum Care Center of educational program of infant care were middle range (mean=3.60). 3) The educational needs of infant cares in the Post-partum Care Center were higher than satisfactory of the mothers in the Post- partum Care Center of educational program of infant care(t=7.71 p=.000). 4) The educational need by content was signs, symptoms and management of disorders(i.g. cyanosis, seizure, fever, etc.) were higher than general care of baby(i.g. feeding, diaper change etc.). In conclusion, when the infant caregiver in the Post-partum Care Center teaching the method of infant care to mother, there should be in consideration of educational need of mother. And its educational contents must be included of mental and emotional development and signs, symptoms and management of disorders.