A Proposed Nursing Theory: Infant Sleep and Development

Abstract

Although well positioned to work with families of young children, nurses do not yet have a theory that guides practice and research by relating infant sleep to child and family development. The authors of this paper describe a proposed theory that combines Bronfenbrenner's bioecological theory of human development with the Barnard model of parent-child interaction to inform nursing practice and research related to infant sleep and optimizing child and family development. The theory focuses on sustainability of change in family processes and infant sleep, with a goal of optimizing family wellness as the proximal environment for child development.

Nursing theories developed to meet children’s needs: a scoping review

“…Chart 1 shows the selected studies according to country, year, databases, and title. Of the 21 publications, nine studies (42%) were conducted in the United States (13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21) , four (19%) in Brazil (22)(23)(24)(25) , two (9%) in Canada (26,27) . Countries such as Mexico (28) , Iran (29) , Portugal (30) , Finland (31) , Sweden (32) , and the United Kingdom (33) presented only one (5%) study each.…”

Sleep promotion for hospitalised children: Developing an evidence-based guideline for nurses

“…Healthcare workers prioritise ward routines above sleep to the extent that child healthcare staff have poor insight into the sleep disruptions associated with the care they provide (Peirce et al 2018 ). Theoretical frameworks were identified that guide nurses to promote sleep in the context of infant development (Keys & Benzies 2018 ), but no age-appropriate guideline was identified. Relying on adult literature from high income settings required modification of recommendations.…”

“…In-hospital, familial involvement maximises limited resources, decreases staff burnout and improves patient safety (Micalizzi et al 2015 ). Families desire to be involved in their child’s hospital care (Bisogni et al 2015 ; Micalizzi et al 2015 ; North et al 2020 ) and the intentional involvement of mothers and caregivers holds promise to promote sleep in hospitals by capitalising on nurse’s relational strengths (Keys & Benzies 2018 ). For the child and family, the benefits may extend beyond hospital discharge (Erondu et al 2019 ).…”

“…Non-pharmacological sleep promotion is a safer and more holistic alternative to pharmacological sleep promotion which is actionable by nurses. Nurses contribute to sleep disruption in hospitals (Monsén & Edéll-Gustafsson 2005 ), but are also positioned to improve sleep through advocacy, practice change (Meltzer, Davis & Mindell 2012 ) and by capitalising on unique relational strengths (Keys & Benzies 2018 ). The centrality of forming therapeutic relationships and creating a therapeutic environment that aids the patient’s well-being is recognised as a core part of the nurses’ role (South African Nursing Council [SANC] 2013 :786).…”

“…(Keys & Benzies 2018), but no age-appropriate guideline was identified. Relying on adult literature from high income settings required modification of recommendations.It is quite possible to modify existing recommendations related to the six themes of: (1) Safety, (2) collaboration withFIGURE 1:…”