Prone Position as a Care Practice of the Physical Therapists in Public Neonatal Intensive Care Units in Southern Brazil: Prone Position in NICU Southern Brazil

This study aimed to identify the use of prone position, by physical therapy care, for infants hospitalized in an NICU in the Southern Region of Brazil. This is a cross-sectional study on a public NICU in the Southern Region of Brazil between December 2015 and May 2018, using standardized questionnaires for physical therapists. We included 44 NICU, totaling 104 professionals interviewed, the mean age of the interviewed was 33.5 years (SD: 7.1) and the mean experience time in the area was 7.7 years (SD: 6.9), and 77.9% reported to have specialization. According to 68.3% of the respondents, there is a protocol for the change of position in the Unit, but the prone position is not indicated in most NICUs (59.6%). Most of the respondents (65.4%) answered affirmatively, but 73.1% reported limitations in their incorporation into the Services, often related to aspects external to the newborn (lack of exclusive or full-time professionals in the NICU (75.0%) and a reduced number of professionals (33.6%)). The prone position is generally not indicated in the hospital (57.7%). Conclusion: The importance of the prone position is recognized, as well as its interference concerning the NPMD of newborns. However, there was a limited alternation of positions during the newborn's hospitalization, followed by a lack of emphasis on orienting the prone position to family/ caregivers. Also, a lack of exclusive or comprehensive physical therapists and the disproportion between demand and number of professionals has been observed.