2023 • Developmental Observer • 11 A B S T R A C T — N I D C A P T R A I N E R S M E E T I N G 2 0 2 3 DOI: 10.14434/do.v16i1.35773Griffiths N1,2, Foureur M3, Spence K1,4, Popat H1,5, Hickey L6, Sinclair L2 1 Grace Centre for Newborn Intensive Care, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Australia, 2 University of Technology Sydney, 3University of Newcastle, 4Western Sydney University, 5University of Sydney, 6Butterfly Unit, The Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne Background Nurses’ perceptions of developmental care (DC) practices have been researched globally for almost 30 years. Yet, little is known of nurse perceptions of DC in surgical NICUs. The stand-alone surgical NICU setting differs from general NICUs. Infants re- quiring surgery are often cared for by numerous treating teams, which may lead to a fragmented approach to care. They expe- rience pain, stress, interrupted sleep and separation, with their family often required to travel or transfer between multiple facil- ities. This research on nurses’ perceptions of developmental care was undertaken in two surgical NICUs, one with an embedded NIDCAP Training Centre (Site A: 23-bed unit), and one with an alternate unit-based model of developmental care education (Site B: 40-bed unit). Aims • To evaluate NICU nurses’ perceptions and attitudes toward developmental care in surgical NICUs. • To explore if the type of developmental care education program provided to nurses influences their perception of developmental care practices in surgical NICUs. Methods An electronic survey was distributed by email to 276 nurses permanently employed in a surgical NICU at two hospitals in two states of Australia. The survey was modified with permission from Family and Infant Neurodevelopmental Education (FINE) Level 2 site assessment document and consisted of 36 questions. Content validity was determined by two experienced neonatal nurses and a statistician. Descriptive statics were used to exam- ine trends in the responses. Data is reported as frequencies and percentages, Chi-square, and Fisher’s Exact Test. Results One hundred and seventeen (n=117) nurses completed the survey exploring their personal perceptions of developmen- tal care and its application in the surgical NICU. Response rates varied; 55% (Site A), and 30% (Site B) with a combined response rate of 42%. Demographics differed between the sites for nurses’ years of experience and post-graduate qualifica- tions. The majority of nurses in each surgical NICU acknowl- edged the benefits of DC for infant sleep (>93%), improving caregiving (>88%), and reducing infant stress (>90%). The challenge to consistently apply DC practices and the effect on nurses’ workload was similar across both units. The two units differed in the nurses’ perceptions of medical staff collabora- tion with DC (18% vs. 45%) p=0.006, nurses’ support of DC (47% vs 29%), access to DC education opportunities (55% vs 37%), the inclusion of DC education in organised study days (82% vs 68%), and the inclusion of DC in the orientation of newly employed nurses (81% vs 58%) p=0.021. A greater proportion of nurses at the non-NIDCAP site in- dicated that communication with families was difficult depend- ing on the parents’ communication style (74% versus 51%) p=0.028 and was less likely to agree that their nursing peers offered support in the application of DC p=0.039. At both sites as nurses’ levels of DC education increased, they were more likely to agree that DC education was not consistently applied (p=0.032) in the surgical NICU. Relevance to NIDCAP The introduction of NIDCAP in surgical NICUs has been a chal- lenge due to the specific population of newborn infants. Various developmental care programs have been implemented as an alternate form of education in these units. These programs can support NIDCAP work through preparation and an understand- ing of developmental care principles by healthcare professionals. Collaboration between the healthcare team is paramount if NIDCAP is to be seen as a model of practice in surgical NICUs. Conclusion: The survey results suggest surgical NICU nurses have a high level of awareness of developmental care and its positive impacts. Despite differences between the units’ developmental care education programs, nurses collectively recognised the value of developmental care in reducing stress for infants and supporting families. Does Developmental Care Education Alter Nurses’ Perceptions of Developmental Care Practices in Surgical Neonatal Intensive Care Units?