Care delivery to newborns with myelomeningocele according to Roy's adaptation model

Abstract

This case study aimed to identify the Nursing diagnoses, addressing physiological aspects according to Roy's Adaptation Theory, of a baby with meningomyelocele hospitalized at a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), and to elaborate pertinent nursing actions for these aspects. The study was developed at the NICU of the Maternity Teaching Hospital Assis Chateaubriand, located in Fortaleza-Ceará, Brazil, between December 2007 and March 2008, when a script was used to survey data. During the analysis, the following diagnoses were recognized: ineffective breathing pattern; imbalanced nutrition: less than body requirements; impaired skin integrity; risk for infection and disturbed sensory perception. The use of this theory permitted recognizing that the newborn can produce positive or negative responses to stimuli and that the implemented targets and interventions were important to replace ineffective by adaptive responses.