Supporting Safe Use of Medications by Parents After Infant Discharge From the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

A Randomized, Controlled Study of a Health Literacy-informed Technology-based Approach to Support Safe Medication Use by Parents After Discharge of Infants From the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

This is a randomized controlled study of parents of children to be discharged from the neonatal intensive care unit at Bellevue and Elmhurst hospitals. A total of 425 subjects will be recruited across two sites over preparatory phases and two primary study phases.

Our overarching goal is to promote safe medication use/adherence for high-risk infants, by leveraging health literacy approaches and mobile technology to reinforce provider counseling and support parent medication management after discharge from the NICU. We will adapt/integrate evidence-based strategies studied in less complex populations, for this vulnerable group. The HELPix (Health Education and Literacy for Parents) pictogram-based intervention, developed by our team, incorporates these strategies, with sizeable improvements found in medication knowledge, dosing errors, and adherence in outpatient general pediatric settings, but to date, HELPix has not been studied in NICU settings

Inclusion Criteria:

1. English or Spanish-speaking
2. 18 years of age and older
3. Child discharged home with a Rx for >1 daily liquid medication (other than multivitamin)
4. Primary person who will administers child's medications.
5. Willingness and ability to participate

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Does not have a working phone number
2. Does not have access to internet (via computer/smartphone)
3. Does not have a mobile phone that receives texts.
4. Not able to return to the hospital for their child's follow-up visit
5. Visual acuity worse than 20/50 according to the Rosenbaum Pocket Screener
6. Uncorrectable hearing impairment