BACKGROUND: The main role of nurses is not only to inform about the disease and treatment of the patient but also to establish an effective therapeutic relationship to address concerns and provide empathy, comfort, and support. This issue is very prominent in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) and doubles the importance of empathetic communication between nurses and parents and promoting empathy skills in nurses working in neonatal intensive care units. AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of a support program on the empathy of neonatal intensive care nurses across the Iran.

METHODS: This study was conducted in 2021 as a semi-experimental intervention in a group of 166 nurses working in the neonatal department all over Iran who met the inclusion criteria. Jefferson's empathy questionnaire was completed electronically by the participants before and after the online education program start. Data were analyzed using SPSS software (V 24.0). 

RESULTS: The empathy score of nurses was 60.31 ± 5.76 before and 66.47 ±6.60 after the intervention. The empathy scores of nurses after the intervention increased statistically significantly.

CONCLUSION: Nurses can communicate empathically with parents by training their verbal and nonverbal communication skills and gaining a common understanding of the feelings of parents of premature infants.

KEYWORDS: Empathy, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Education, Nurse