Date of Award

2022

Document Type

Project

College/School

College of Nursing

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Readers

Carrie Westmoreland Miller

Abstract

Neonatal jaundice is a common phenomenon among infants worldwide but the condition may progress to severe hyperbilirubinemia and if this progression is left unchecked, kernicterus may result. Kernicterus is the result of bilirubin toxicity that has reached the brain. It may result in irreversible hearing loss, brain damage, and death. Black and African American infants represent twenty five percent of reported kernicterus cases in the United States. This racial health disparity represents a practice gap that this project aims to highlight and address through provider education. Midwives and paraprofessionals at a midwifery organization in the Pacific Northwest were invited to participate in a story completion process as a means to inform an educational module for providers of neonatal jaundice care. Results of the story completion process were consistent with what we know about health equity and adequate care: listening and trust are foundational to the patient-provider relationship. Empowering families to be literate in the care of neonatal jaundice is imperative. The concepts formed the basis for a provider module that is included in this study. The content of the module has been tailored to the care of neonatal jaundice in Black and African American infants and includes an educational handout for the families and caregivers of this population.

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