NICU Design: Open Space Versus Single Family Room

This prospective, multicenter observational study aims to investigate parents' and healthcare professionals' perceptions of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) design, comparing Open Space and Single Family Room settings. Parents' perceived stress and involvement in neonatal care will be assessed using the Parental Stressor Scale-NICU (PSS-NICU) and the Nurse Parent Support Tool (NPST), while healthcare professionals' perceived stress will be assessed using the Stress-Related Vulnerability Scale (SVS). Parents will complete questionnaires at approximately 15 days after admission to the NICU and again approximately 5 days before discharge. Healthcare professionals will complete the questionnaire once during the study.

Inclusion Criteria: * Newborns: gestational age at birth less than 32 weeks or birth weight less than 1500 grams; absence of congenital malformations; absence of grade III or higher intraventricular hemorrhage. * Parents: age ≥18 years; written informed consent to participate in the study. Participation of either one parent or both parents is allowed. * Healthcare professionals (physicians, nurses, and pediatric nurses): in service for at least 1 year at the participating Clinical Departments; informed consent to participate in the study. Exclusion Criteria: * Parents who do not understand Italian, either in written or spoken form.