Sinai Health Bioethics Grand Rounds – Equity, inclusion and cultural humility: Contemporizing the NICU family centered care model | Virtual

Speaker:
Dr. Beatrice Lechner | Women and Infants Hospital, Brown University

Abstract:
Existing NICU family centred care models, which are currently utilized for provision of psychosocial support to families, lack the key elements of equity, inclusion and cultural humility. These models were conceived to support families in navigating the stressful life event of an infant’s NICU admission. Their development, however, occurred in an era prior to recognition of the medical field’s systematic shortcomings in providing equitable care and their impact on disparities in outcomes for marginalized communities. Given the significant neonatal care inequities experienced by various marginalized groups based on race, ethnicity, immigrant status, limited English proficiency status, LGBTQ+ status and others, incorporating the experience of these patients in a thoughtful, targeted manner in family centred care frameworks is of critical importance in order to ensure culturally humble and thus more just and equitable treatment. In this presentation, we will review the past approaches to family centred care in the NICU and propose a novel, updated framework which integrates knowledge of self and of the patient and reflective practice as key steps necessary for the development of trustworthiness and trust in the patient-provider relationship.

Learning objectives:
– Assess outdated NICU family-centred care models and their inadequacy in modern times.
– Identify essential evidence-based psychosocial care elements absent in current NICU frameworks, crucial for marginalized groups.
– Investigate the ethical imperative for a holistic framework integrating evidence-based, equitable, culturally sensitive psychosocial care to foster trust, enhance outcomes, and promote justice in neonatal care.

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