Infant care is an essential part of the healthcare industry and an aspect of healthcare
where the multi-disciplinary teams work closely together. Within this collaboration of
teams, the term "infant wellbeing" is frequently used. Yet even though wellbeing on its
own is a multi-faceted concept, when pertaining to the infant, this concept can
become very complex and difficult to understand and apply. Dictionary definitions of
wellbeing emphasize a state of being healthy, happy or prosperous. However, despite
its common-sense appeal, it was found that the term wellbeing is not a particularly
well- defined outcome, especially in reference to the infant.
Despite the fact that scrutiny of the literature indicated that the term "infant wellbeing" is
used by different members of the multi-disciplinary team, a clear concise universal
definition for healthcare settings and professionals is missing from published literature.
In fact, no recorded definition for the concept was to be found.
Consequently, the aim of this study was to develop an operational definition for the
concept "infant wellbeing" that can be used congruently between different members of
the multi-disciplinary team. This is done by means of a concept analysis as described
by Walker and Avant (2014).
The findings revealed that the infant consists of certain dimensions which all play a role
in the infant's wellbeing. Equally the infant also functions within a certain system or
domain which also affects the wellbeing of the infant. These aspects are discussed in
detail.
By having a specific general description of infant wellbeing, nurses and other members
of the multi-disciplinary team will have a common understanding of what the concept
entails which also assists in the development of standardized language within the
healthcare profession. / MCur, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nwu/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/15409 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | Matthews, Eileen Martha |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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