It has been identified in the literature that
neonatal nurses often have the propensity
to focus on meeting the medical and
technological needs of the infant rather
than involving themselves in building
relationships between parents and their
children1. The importance of the bond
between a child and their parents is
recognised in the National Service
Framework for Children, Young People
and Maternity Services2 and so neonatal
nurses, as primary care providers, must
have an understanding of how to promote
parental attachment in NICU in order to
comply with family-centred care
philosophy. This review will present the
evidence currently available from both
qualitative and quantitative studies in
order to compare findings from the last
10 years.