Table 4 Implications for clinical practice

To optimize parent-infant closeness NICU clinicians should:

• Support parents to be able to care for their infant autonomously

• Provide emotional support to parents

• Optimize parents physical proximity to their infant (e.g., skin to skin contact, holding)

• Engage in shared decision-making with parents to arrive at care decisions that are optimal for infants and their families, and acknowledge parents’ key role

• Be aware of the difficulty of separation events for parents, and help them develop strategies to cope with these events such as goodbye rituals when they need to leave the bedside

• When clinical staff must separate parent and infant for care requirements, they should be cognizant of parent’s responses and acknowledge the difficulty of these events for parents.