Correlation between Quality of Care and Length of Hospital Stay in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Background: Length of hospital stay (LHS) is the most important and practical indicator in hospitals, which largely reflects the level of hospital performance and activity. It is also an important indicator for resource planning. Moreover, the quality of care can theoretically be related to LHS. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between LHS and quality of nursing care in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Methods: In this descriptive correlational study, the samples were 205 premature infants hospitalized in the NICU and 80 nurses working in the NICUs of selected hospitals. They were selected based on the inclusion criteria. The data were gathered using the demographics of nurses and neonates through Quality Patient Care Scale (QUALPAC). The data was analyzed in SPSS (version 21) using Spearman correlation coefficient. Results: The results showed that 47.5% of the nurses were within the age range of 29-36 years and 68.8% of nurses had a working experience of 1-5 years. There was an inverse correlation between the neonate's length of stay and the quality of care (r=-0.507, P<0.0001). Conclusion: The findings revealed an inverse relationship between the length of stay and quality of care. By improving the quality of care, we can decrease the LHS.