Abstract
BACKGROUND: Preterm infants must spend a few days to several months in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in order to learn how to synchronize their breathing, sucking, and swallowing in order to achieve safe and successful oral feedings because their digestive, respiratory, and central nervous systems are still developing. The transition period from gavage to fully autonomous oral feedings is shortened by an oral stimulation program, which also enhances the growth velocity and oro-motor skills. METHODS AND MATERIAL: Using the nonprobability purposive sampling technique, 40 preterm babies were selected for the control and experimental groups. The recruitment period was from June 2023 to April 2024. The control group design for the pretest and post-test was quasiexperimental. The preterm newborn was given prefeeding stimulation by the investigator and KMC by the mother, among other nurse-led combination modalities (NLCMs). The entire 7-day intervention was conducted across two intervals. A number of parameters were evaluated, including the length of hospital stay, weight increase, sleep patterns, and the time it took to become fully oral. Obtained data were analyzed using Fisher's exact test, Mann-Whitney test, Chi-square test, t-test, and ANOVA with two-factor repeated measurements, posthoc Bonferroni test, and Z-value of the Wilcoxon signed rank test. RESULTS: As compared to the control group, the results indicate that the intervention was beneficial in increasing the preterm neonate's weight, improving their sleep quality and hours, reducing their length of stay, and speeding up their acquisition of feeding skills at the P <0.001 level of significance. CONCLUSION: Because NLCM was successful in increasing the feeding parameters of the preterm newborns, it can be successfully used in the NICU to care for preterm newborns. Mothers will learn about their preterm newborn's condition and how to apply it to their day-to-day care.