Newborn Infection Care as a Nursing Teaching Experience

The patient of interest is EV, a 24- year old female who gave birth to an infant girl. The patient and the infant are expected to remain at the hospital due to a group B streptococcal infection found in the baby’s system. The blood test of the infant revealed the presence of the infecting bacteria within the circulatory system. Before diagnosis, mild symptoms of infection were noticed, such as unusual irritability, persistent crying, and poor feeding.

There were also reported patterns fluctuating sleep patterns, where the infant either slept more than usual or could not fall asleep due to the symptoms. The teaching needs to focus on educating the mother on signs of complications, and the strength of the patient is the fact that she is a medical specialist herself, but the weakness is the presence of mild postpartum depression symptoms.

It is important to note that the presence of the infection was spotted rather quickly. It is stated that “the majority of infants become symptomatic by 12 to 24 hours of age” (Puopolo et al., 2019, p. 2). The first part of the teaching experience revolves around a provision of information on the diagnosis or identification of the disease, which was recorded and assessed in a timely manner. Group B streptococcus causes invasive, life-threatening infections in newborn babies.

The nursing diagnosis is Early-onset Sepsis. Despite significant advances in the prevention of GBS infections, they remain the leading infectious cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality in developed countries (Puopolo et al., 2019). Infections in children that develop during the first week of life are classified as early infections, after the first week of life and up to three months of age – as late. The main manifestations of early GBS infection are pneumonia and sepsis, and the late-stage leads to meningitis.

The vast majority of early infections are clinically apparent in the first 24 hours of life (Puopolo et al., 2019). Infection of a child occurs intranasally when GBS enters the amniotic fluid from the vagina after labor has been established or the membranes have ruptured, although in rare cases, it can penetrate through intact membranes. When aspiration of infected amniotic fluid, GBS can enter the lungs of the newborn, which can lead to bacteremia and pneumonia (Puopolo et al., 2019). A newborn can also become infected when passing through a woman’s birth canal.

The teaching experience revolves around providing recommendations and guidelines for the mother for her to be able to spot any abnormalities and symptoms of complications. Since the infant is put on antibiotics for combatting GBS, the mother is educated and provided resources for observing the key indicators of the disease progression. The first component of the teaching experience is focused on asking the mother to actively observe the movement of legs and arms since the deceased movements are indicative of the main GBS signs. The second potential symptom, which was given to the mother, is rooted in the infant exhibiting pain in the case of limb movements.

The third element of the teaching experience addresses the fact breathing problems can be an integral complication of GBS infection progression. The fourth potential sign of the disease, as a key part of the teaching experience, is fever, which can vary from one infant to another. Red spots and areas on the skin can also be an indicator of the disease progression.

Reference

Puopolo, K. M., Lynfield, R., & Cummings, J. J. (2019). Management of infants at risk for group B streptococcal disease. Pediatrics, 144(2), 1-19. Web.