Skin-to-skin contact between parents and preterm infants is recommended because it has proven to be valuable for the infants' development and healing. However, it can be difficult to comply with this guideline and still ensure a good working environment for the staff.This randomised controlled trial compared a new recliner developed in collaboration with parents and staff with a hospital bed for use in neonatal and maternity care using parents' rating of own comfort/discomfort, self-reliance, and felt security, and the chair's/bed's functionality at two different days (Q1 and Q2) of hospitalisation. The physical work-environment was evaluated through a questionnaire to the staff.Ninety-seven parents and 53 health professionals participated. Parents had significantly lower discomfort, in the recliner at Q1 compared to the hospital bed. The staff had to twist and/or bend their back significantly less often when working at the recliner as compared to the hospital bed. Practitioner summary: Due to poor working environment, a participatory design project developed a new recliner that improved the possibility of infants having skin-to-skin contact with their parents. The recliner provided a better working-environment for the staff while focussing on improving comfort and self-reliance of the parents, as compared to a hospital bed. Abbreviations: NICU: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; VELA: Vermund Larsen.
Keywords: Infant; ergonomics; interior design and furnishings; parents; sitting position.