Neonatal intensive care nursery staff perceive enhanced workplace quality with the single-family room design

Objective: To compare perceived workplace quality in an open-bay neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and a single-family room (SFR) NICU. Study Design: Prospective non-randomized, non-controlled cohort study. Result: Staff workplace quality perceptions assessed included the following: the quality of being a Sanford Health System employee (NS-not significant), the quality of the NICU physical work environment, the quality of NICU patient care, the job quality in the NICU, the quality of health and safety in the NICU (NS), the quality of safety and security in the NICU, the quality of interaction with other members of the NICU health-care team (NS; in subanalysis nurse scores significantly declined), the quality of interaction with NICU technology and the off-job quality of life (NS). Scores for each category and the total scores were statistically greater in the SFR, except as noted (NS). Conclusion: Staff perceptions of workplace quality were significantly greater in the SFR than the open-bay NICU. Journal of Perinatology (2010) 30, 352-358; doi: 10.1038/jp.2009.137; published online 1 October 2009