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BackgroundApproximately 10%-15% of children struggle with different socioemotional and psychological difficulties in infancy and early childhood. Thus, health service providers should have access to mental health interventions that can reach more parents than traditional face-to-face interventions. However, despite increasing evidence on the efficacy of internet-based mental health interventions, the pace in transferring such interventions to health care has been slow. One of the major suggested barriers to this may be the health personnel’s attitudes to perceived usefulness of internet-based interventions. ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to examine health professionals’ perceived usefulness of internet-based mental health interventions and to identify the key areas that they consider new internet-based services to be useful. MethodsBetween May and September 2018, 2884 leaders and practitioners of infant and child health services were recruited to a cross-sectional web-based survey through the following channels: (1) existing email addresses from the Regional Centre for Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Eastern and Southern Norway, course database, (2) an official mailing list to infant and child health services, (3) social media, or (4) other recruitment channels. Respondents filled in background information and were asked to rate the usefulness of internet-based interventions for 12 different infant and child mental health problem areas based on the broad categories from the Diagnostic Classification of Mental Health and Developmental Disorders of Infancy and Early Childhood (DC:0-5). Perceived usefulness was assessed with 1 global item: “How often do you think internet-based self-help programs can be useful for following infant and child mental health problems in your line of work?” The answers were scored on a 4-point scale ranging from 0 (never) to 3 (often). ResultsThe participants reported that they sometimes or often perceived internet-based interventions as useful for different infant and child mental health problems (scale of 0-3, all means>1.61). Usefulness of internet-based interventions was rated acceptable for sleep problems (mean 2.22), anxiety (mean 2.09), and social withdrawal and shyness (mean 2.07), whereas internet-based interventions were rated as less useful for psychiatric problems such as obsessive behaviors (mean 1.89), developmental disorders (mean 1.91), or trauma (mean 1.61). Further, there were a few but small differences in perceived usefulness between service leaders and practitioners (all effect sizes

Aim and Objective: The aim of this study was to explore mothers' and public health nurses' (PHN) experiences with sleep problems in children aged 6 months to 3 years in Norway. Background: Sleep problems in children are common, affecting their health and development, and their mothers' well‐being. It is also the primary reason parents seek help in well‐child clinics (WCC). However, there is limited knowledge regarding the experiences of these mothers and the public health nurses who consult them. Design: Qualitative design. Methods: Four semi‐structured focus group interviews were conducted: two with mothers (n = 14) who had children with sleep problems and two with public health nurses (n = 14) from well‐child clinics. The Framework Method was used for analysing the interviews of mothers. Data from public health nurses were charted onto the analytical framework of maternal data to understand how or whether public health nurses addressed the issues raised by mothers. The study is reported according to the COREQ checklist. Result: The analysis resulted in two main themes: 'therapeutic alliance' (categories 'alliance ruptures' and 'demanding negotiation process') and 'reorganisation of identity' (categories 'unfulfilled expectations' and 'internal tension conflicts'). Conclusion: Young children's sleep problems present challenges to new mothers due to failed expectations, negatively affecting their feelings as mothers and towards their children, and consequently the reorganising of maternal identity. Most mothers experienced unsatisfactory therapeutic alliances while seeking help from public health nurses because advice was considered overly general, contradictory and unsafe for their children. Public health nurses were mostly aware of the parental consequences of children's sleep problems, but many appeared unable to help because of limited time and knowledge. Relevance to Clinical Practice: Public health nurses need to establish a therapeutic alliance and provide evidence‐based knowledge and guidance on sleep problems while also considering women's reorganisation of identity when becoming mothers. Clinical Trial Registration: Open Science Framework: osf‐registrations‐6ag38‐v1 (https://archive.org/details/osf‐registrations‐6ag38‐v1). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study aims to review the existing literature on Internet‐based health interventions directed to support parents of children aged 0–5 years. Methods: We systematically searched electronic databases between January 2000 and 2018. The search consisted of terms describing eHealth, intervention and families and/or children. Results: Internet‐based parent support interventions were most often directed at rehabilitation and selective prevention, and we identified more studies on mental health (57%) than somatic health (41%). Developmental disorders were the most frequently studied mental health condition (n = 33), while interventions for obesity (15%) were the most studied somatic health condition. Forty‐four percent of mental health studies were RCTs and 65% of interventions were theory driven. Interventions most often used a behavioural approach, included guidance and delivered content via text‐based information. Conclusion: Several significant gaps were identified such as the need for more research outside of English‐speaking countries, more systematic reviews and effect studies. This review also elucidates the need for researchers to improve reporting on the theoretical approaches employed in interventions, and to focus on determining the importance of guidance. Finally, program developers should consider using more audio‐visual technology to avoid reinforcing social inequalities in access to healthcare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Parents and professionals receive conflicting recommendations about management of infant sleep problems. The aim of this umbrella review was to provide an overview of summarised research on the prevention and treatment of sleep problems in infants (0–1 year), content of the interventions and the conditions under which they are delivered. Methods: The umbrella review included five systematic reviews of 24 individual studies, mainly randomised controlled trials. Searches were conducted in PsycINFO, Cochrane, Campbell, Epistemonikos, PDQ-Evidence, IN SUM and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, for reviews published during 2010–2021. Results: The systematic reviews showed that behavioural interventions increased sleep in infants and parents. Interventions entailed reducing parental disturbances during sleep onset and enabling the infant to fall asleep and maintain sleep on their own. Knowledge about infant sleep and the establishment of positive bedtime routines seemed crucial for preventing and treating sleep difficulties. The interventions can be delivered in a few sessions, typically one-on-one during the postnatal period. Conclusion: Behavioural interventions can be recommended and adapted to the individual family. Positive outcomes for the infant and the family depend on a close and coordinated collaboration between child health clinics, community psychologists, general physicians and other services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This population-based cohort study aimed to investigate the demographic and psychosocial characteristics associated with fear of childbirth and the relative importance of such fear as a predictor of elective caesarean section.Methods: A sample of 1789 women from the Akershus Birth Cohort in Norway provided data collected by three self-administered questionnaires at 17 and 32 weeks of pregnancy and 8 weeks postpartum. Information about the participants' childbirths was obtained from the hospital records.Results: Eight percent of the women reported fear of delivery, defined as a score of ≥85 on the Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire. Using multivariable logistic regression models, a previous negative overall birth experience exerted the strongest impact on fear of childbirth, followed by impaired mental health and poor social support. Fear of childbirth was strongly associated with a preference for elective caesarean section (aOR 4.6, 95% CI 2.9-7.3) whereas the association of fear with performance of caesarean delivery was weaker (aOR 2.4, 95% CI 1.2-4.9). The vast majority (87%) of women with fear of childbirth did not, however, receive a caesarean section. By contrast, a previous negative overall birth experience was highly predictive of elective caesarean section (aOR 8.1, 95% CI 3.9-16.7) and few women without such experiences did request caesarean section.Conclusions: Results suggest that women with fear of childbirth may have identifiable vulnerability characteristics, such as poor mental health and poor social support. Results also emphasize the need to focus on the subjective experience of the birth to prevent fear of childbirth and elective caesarean sections on maternal request. Regarding the relationship with social support, causality has to be interpreted cautiously, as social support was measured at 8 weeks postpartum only. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives This study aimed to assess the relation between fear of childbirth and previous birth experiences. Design A prospective study of pregnant women. Setting Akershus University Hospital, Norway. Population Parous women ( n = 1357) scheduled to give birth at Akershus University Hospital in Norway during 2009-2011. Methods Data were collected using two self-completed questionnaires at pregnancy weeks 17 and 32. Fear of childbirth was assessed by the Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire. Previous overall birth experience was measured using a numeric rating scale, and previous obstetric complications were assessed using an index of seven obstetric complications: emergency cesarean section, instrumental vaginal delivery, extensive blood loss, retained placenta, serious maternal infection during labor, thrombosis, and anal sphincter tears. Main outcome measure Fear of childbirth. Results The odds ratio of fear of childbirth was 4.8 (95% confidence interval ( CI) 2.8-8.3) for a previous negative overall birth experience, 1.9 (95% CI 1.2-3.1) for one obstetric complication and 2.6 (95% CI 1.2-5.5) for two or more complications. The estimates were adjusted for mental health, labor pain, time since last delivery, age, and education. Almost 80% of women who experienced obstetric complications neither considered the birth a negative overall experience nor developed a fear of childbirth. Conclusions The association between a previous subjectively negative birth experience and fear of childbirth was high and was greater than the association between previous obstetric complications and fear of childbirth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fear of childbirth (FOC) is an important women''s health issue. The Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire (W-DEQ) is currently the most frequently used instrument to measure FOC. The scale is designed to measure different aspects of FOC but is conceptualized as a uni-dimensional instrument. Our aim was to investigate the underlying factor structure of the W-DEQ version A. A total of 1642 women scheduled to give birth at Akershus University Hospital (Norway) during 2009 and 2010 completed the W-DEQ in the third trimester. Validity and reliability were estimated by means of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses and correlations with other relevant variables. Results confirmed a multidimensional structure of the W-DEQ. Six factors were identified, each measuring different domains: ''Fear'', ''Negative appraisal'', ''Loneliness'', ''Lack of self-efficacy'', ''Lack of positive anticipation'', and ''Concerns for the child''. The final model resulted in a 25-item version of the instrument with adequate psychometric properties. Subfactors correlated differently with several relevant variables. Especially the factor ''Fear'' was highly correlated with both the overall W-DEQ and several important outcomes. Future studies could examine whether this factor may serve as a good proxy for the full W-DEQ version A. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]