Objective To investigate the impact of family integrated peri-discharge management on the discharge readiness and growth and development of preterm infants' families. Methods A convenience sampling was used to enroll 80 preterm infants and their primary caregivers admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the Affiliated Hospital of Yangzhou University from September 2022 to September 2023 as study subjects for a prospective non-randomized controlled study. Among them, 40 preterm infants admitted from September 2022 to January 2023 were assigned to the control group, and 40 preterm infants admitted from February to September 2023 were assigned to the experimental group. Parents of preterm infants in the control group received only conventional health education, while those in the experimental group received the family integrated peri-discharge management program in addition. The two groups were compared in terms of family discharge readiness, rate of reconsultation for non-primary diseases, and growth and development. Statistical analysis was performed using t-test, χ2 test. Results At discharge, the primary caregivers in the experimental group achieved significantly higher scores in all dimensions of preterm infant family discharge readiness than those in the control group［ basic home care skills (17.68±2.15) points vs (12.38±3.46) points, feeding and nutrition (16.24±2.78) points vs (11.37±3.08) points, observation of symptoms and signs (18.67±3.78) points vs (12.56±2.49) points, early intervention (9.79±1.15) points vs (7.38±1.46) points, special care (7.47±1.78) points vs (6.12±1.45) points, parent–child relationship (7.61±1.85) points vs (6.27±1.48) points, first aid (6.64±1.54) points vs (5.41±1.21) points, safety prevention (6.80±1.36) points vs (5.38±1.14) points, and total score (83.27±10.78) points vs (64.79±13.37) points, with t values of 8.229, 7.423, 8.537, 8.201, 3.719, 3.577, 3.972, 5.061, and 8.805, respectively, all P<0.001］. The rate of non-primary disease revisit in preterm infants was significantly lower in the experimental group than that in the control group ［5%(2/40) vs 25%(10/40), with χ2 value of 4.012, P=0.024］. At 1 month after discharge, all growth and development indicators of preterm infants were significantly higher in the experimental group than those in the control group ［body weight (4 577.3±122.5) g vs (3 784.2±118.4) g, body length (56.3±2.8) cm vs (54.3±2.3) cm, and head circumference (38.2±0.5) cm vs (35.7±0.2) cm, with t values of 29.442, 3.491, and 29.361, respectively, all P<0.05)］. Conclusion Family integrated peri-discharge management can improve the discharge readiness of preterm infants' families, reduce the post-discharge revisit rate, and promote growth and development of preterm infants. It is a sustainable high-quality nursing strategy that can be implemented under the current healthcare system.
2026, Vol. 14 
