Introduction:

Newborns are one of the most vulnerable populations, and their risk of suffering an adverse event during their hospital stay is influenced by diverse factors.

Objective:

To identify the adverse events among newborns hospitalized in an Intermediate Care Unit in 2018.

Methodology:

This is a descriptive, transversal, and retrospective study carried out in a Newborn Intermediate Care Unit of the Maternal and Perinatal National Institute during 2018. A data gathering chart with 9 items related to the corresponding nursing procedures was designed. A univariate data analysis was calculated, and the results were shown in tables and graphs.

Results:

73 adverse events were analyzed. The lowest gestational age was 32 weeks, and the longest hospitalization was 28 days. 60% of these events were related to the more delicate and with the more complex situation newborns; and 58% of these were related to percutaneous or peripheral catheter infections and the most frequent pathogen was Coagulase-Negative Staphylococcus. Only 28.5% of the events were reported.

Discussion:

These findings are in line with the results of other research studies. Addressing the diverse factors which contribute to the adverse events in newborns in Intermediate Care Units is suggested.

Conclusions:

Being premature and the length of the hospital stay increase the risk of adverse events in newborns. It is critical to promote a culture of events reporting.