Results of domains and statements of rounds two and three
| Domains and statements | Round 2 mean (SD) | Round 3 mean (SD) | Cohen's d | p Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Pain and stress | 4.96 (1.26) | 5.18 (1.19) | −0.18 | 0.19 |
| Identifying effective interventions to prevent or reduce pain or stress | 5.11 (1.52) | 5.49 (1.07) | −0.29 | 0.21 |
| Identifying best practices for pain assessment | 5.07 (1.13) | 5.02 (1.11) | 0.05 | 0.83 |
| Identifying pain and/or stress guidelines | 4.84 (1.02) | 4.76 (1.05) | 0.08 | 0.82 |
| 2. Family centred care | 4.86 (1.44) | 4.84 (1.29) | 0.10 | 0.76 |
| Identifying strategies to support the needs of parents and family members | 5.05 (1.13) | 5.04 (1.23) | 0.01 | 0.89 |
| Identifying and evaluating strategies to support parental attachment | 4.94 (1.09) | 4.85 (1.37) | 0.07 | 0.56 |
| Identifying best practices for the implementation of family centred care | 4.69 (1.25) | 4.80 (1.21) | −0.09 | 0.91 |
| Evaluating the role and involvement of parents in the care of their infant | 4.83 (1.20) | 4.78 (1.20) | 0.04 | 0.43 |
| Evaluating developmental care | 4.76 (1.06) | 4.75 (1.14) | 0.01 | 1.00 |
| Evaluating the effect of environmental factors on neonatal development | 4.81 (1.09) | 4.65 (1.11) | 0.15 | 0.03 |
| Evaluating individual care aspects (sleep, positioning, body language) of developmental care | 4.66 (1.19) | 4.60 (1.15) | 0.06 | 0.32 |
| Evaluating the effectiveness of NIDCAP and NIDCAP strategies | 4.61 (1.16) | 4.31 (1.18) | 0.26 | 0.09 |
| 3. Clinical nursing care practices | 4.71 (1.39) | 4.82 (1.16) | −0.09 | 0.47 |
| Improving the care and parental education of chronically ill neonates requiring long term care | 4.77 (1.30) | 4.76 (1.22) | 0.01 | 0.94 |
| Nursing management of very low birthweight infants | 4.53 (1.32) | 4.75 (1.19) | −0.18 | 0.07 |
| Improving nutrition in preterm and sick term infants | 4.74 (1.33) | 4.67 (1.19) | 0.06 | 0.88 |
| Identifying best practice in the management of invasive lines and catheters | 5.02 (1.09) | 4.65 (1.16) | 0.33 | 0.08 |
| Identifying best practices in enteral feeding | 4.38 (1.15) | 4.60 (1.20) | −0.19 | 0.20 |
| Identifying best practices breast feeding | 4.20 (1.23) | 4.53 (1.10) | −0.28 | 0.08 |
| Identifying and evaluating interventions to improve skin and wound care in neonates | 4.60 (1.43) | 4.45 (1.21) | −0.14 | 1.00 |
| Identifying and implementing best practices in discharge planning | 4.64 (1.30) | 4.45 (1.43) | 0.14 | 0.60 |
| Identifying the best care practices for infants with neurological problems | 4.57 (1.41) | 4.44 (1.12) | 0.10 | 0.72 |
| Improving advanced life support strategies to improve patient outcomes | 4.65 (1.18) | 4.44 (1.12) | 0.18 | 0.46 |
| Identifying the best care practices for surgical infants | 4.45 (1.37) | 4.24 (1.18) | 0.16 | 0.38 |
| Identifying and implementing strategies to promote kangaroo mother (skin-to-skin) care | 4.24 (1.27) | 4.20 (1.39) | 0.03 | 0.80 |
| Evaluating strategies for regulation of neonatal temperature | 4.95 (1.18) | 4.13 (1.09) | 0.72 | <0.01 |
| Evaluating routine nursing care procedures | 4.48 (1.18) | 4.00 (1.37) | 0.38 | 0.17 |
| 4. Quality and safety | 4.72 (1.33) | 4.78 (1.15) | −0.05 | 0.84 |
| Identifying and evaluating strategies to reduce medication errors | 5.03 (1.05) | 5.20 (1.19) | −0.15 | 0.35 |
| Identifying safe medication administration practices | 4.61 (1.23) | 4.96 (1.19) | −0.29 | 0.07 |
| Improving patient safety and patient outcomes | 4.79 (1.23) | 4.78 (1.03) | 0.01 | 0.74 |
| Improving healthcare team communication and collaboration | 4.73 (1.17) | 4.78 (1.17) | −0.04 | 0.44 |
| Identifying and implementing a safe working environment for staff | 4.68 (1.11) | 4.36 (1.21) | 0.28 | 0.10 |
| 5. Ethics | 4.44 (1.45) | 4.64 (1.16) | −0.15 | 0.49 |
| Improving end-of-life care for neonates and their families | 4.73 (1.21) | 5.05 (1.18) | −0.27 | 0.14 |
| Exploring the role of parents in ethical decision making | 4.90 (1.27) | 4.95 (1.35) | −0.04 | 0.94 |
| Developing palliative care pathways for neonates | 5.24 (1.04) | 4.78 (1.10) | 0.43 | 0.03 |
| 6. Respiratory and ventilation | 4.29 (1.44) | 4.44 (1.10) | −0.12 | 0.46 |
| Identifying best practices in the care of non-invasive ventilation in infants | 4.97 (1.07) | 4.85 (1.21) | 0.11 | 0.92 |
| Identifying best practices in the care of the mechanically ventilated infant | 4.92 (1.23) | 4.65 (1.31) | 0.21 | 0.38 |
| 7. Infection and inflammation | 4.07 (1.54) | 4.16 (1.24) | 0.01 | 0.87 |
| Evaluating infection prevention strategies | 5.11 (1.17) | 4.78 (1.29) | 0.27 | 0.57 |
| Identifying and evaluating interventions to monitor and reduce hospital-associated infections | 4.96 (1.19) | 4.71 (1.20) | 0.21 | 0.21 |
| Evaluating sepsis management and care to improve outcomes | 5.05 (1.04) | 4.36 (1.50) | 0.60 | 0.03 |
| 8. Professional issues in NICU nursing | 4.14 (1.50) | 4.05 (1.21) | 0.07 | 0.81 |
| Identifying interventions to implement evidence into NICU nursing practice | 4.59 (1.41) | 5.02 (1.03) | −0.35 | 0.03 |
| Identifying strategies to reduce stress and improve performance in NICU nursing | 4.60 (1.30) | 4.85 (1.11) | −0.21 | 0.10 |
| Evaluating nursing education and training strategies | 5.08 (0.83) | 4.64 (1.11) | 0.45 | 0.03 |
| Evaluating the impact of the changing NICU workforce on patient outcomes (advanced nurse practice roles, physician assistants, etc) | 4.53 (1.26) | 4.55 (1.10) | −0.02 | 0.40 |
| Identifying optimal nurse staffing levels | 5.00 (0.98) | 4.49 (1.25) | 0.45 | 0.10 |
Scoring on a 6-point scale.
NICU, neonatal intensive care unit; NIDCAP, Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program.