Improving Parents' Emotional Well-Being in NICU: A Scoping Review.

This is a scoping review, not a meta-analysis, so it maps the range of studies rather than combining their effects. The studies were very different in design, intervention, timing and outcome measures. Direct comparison is difficult. The search was limited to articles published between January 2022 and December 2024, so older evidence was not included. The review noted a language restriction, which may have excluded relevant studies in other languages. Most interventions were aimed at mothers, and few included fathers, so findings may not apply equally to all parents. The review found no studies of nurse-led interventions, despite nursing's central role in NICU family care. It is hard to prevent selection of who receives an intervention and to keep parents and staff unaware of treatment in NICU studies, and some included studies were uncontrolled or qualitative. Selective reporting may have affected the completeness and comparability of results.

The authors reported no funding, ethics, consent or conflict-of-interest issues.

Do not conclude that any single component, such as family-centred care, massage or an app, is proven to improve parent emotional health on its own. Many programmes were delivered with routine NICU care, staff support, education and environmental changes. The review also included uncontrolled and qualitative studies.