RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness of the 'Creating Opportunities for Parent Empowerment' (COPE) programme in reducing stress levels in mothers of preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). METHODS: Clinical trial performed in Colombia, including mothers of infants younger than 34 weeks of gestation, hospitalized, without a history of premature delivery. The mothers with psychiatric illnesses, language disorders, history of use of psychoactive substances and whose newborns had a congenital malformation were excluded. A group intervened with the COPE programme and a control group with the usual institutional management were formed. Block randomization and masking was used for mothers and evaluators. The Parental Stress Scale was applied: NICU; Shapiro Wilk normality test, Wilcoxon test and covariance analysis (ANCOVA) with a significance level of p<.05, 95% CI. RESULTS: 66 mothers were enrolled. The two groups were similar in their demographic characteristics and in the initial stress level score. The control group increased the final stress score in two categories and the intervention group decreased final values in all categories. The initial and final scores of the overall general stress level showed a significant decrease (p<.01), but when comparing with the ANCOVA analysis there was no significant difference (p=.4). CONCLUSIONS: The COPE programme reduces the level of maternal stress, strengthening aspects during hospitalization, such as: emotional support, strengthening their role as caregivers and interaction with their babies and the development of a friendly environment in the NICU.