MIDIRS Essence > August 2010 > MIDIRS

Child health charity produces new educational DVD - aimed at parents of sick and premature babies

Originally posted on Aug 2010

A new DVD resource aimed at parents of sick and premature babies and the health care professionals who support them, is currently in production.

It will be the first educational DVD of its kind, following real parents’ experiences of having a sick or premature baby in the UK.

While the survival rates and longer-term outlook for babies who are born prematurely and/or sick continue to improve, the stress and crisis that surround the birth of such vulnerable infants is unchanging.

Parents who have premature/sick babies can find themselves grieving for the healthy term baby that they had anticipated. Where many parents may have already had an image of their newborn baby fixed in their minds, the physical appearance of a premature or sick baby can be very different to what was anticipated. This can be particularly so, where their baby is barely visible under all the specialist apparatus that is used to continuously monitor health and well-being, assist breathing and keep the baby warm and nourished. This can also, understandably, impact on the parents’ ability to ‘bond’/form an attachment with their baby.

Therefore, while they feel they should love their baby immediately following its birth, the separation associated with having a baby admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and challenges associated with establishing breastfeeding, being able to touch, interact with, and care for their baby, can make it a highly stressful and emotional time for many new parents.

Produced by child health charity Best Beginnings, Small Wonders will empower and show parents how to care for their baby when they have been born under difficult circumstances.

The DVD will give a realistic portrayal of how parents can interact with their babies, including breastfeeding, skin-to-skin contact and ‘positive touch’. All of these have been demonstrated to improve the health of premature and sick babies. The DVD will also help health care professionals better enable parents to play a pivotal role in the care of their premature and sick babies.

Small Wonders has been informed by speaking to parents of sick or premature babies about their experiences, and to health care professionals about the role of parents on neonatal units. Best Beginnings commissioned focus groups with mothers and fathers from the across the UK and in-depth interviews with health care professionals.

The parents interviewed who had babies who were born prematurely had experienced problems after birth including aortic stenosis, vomiting and epilepsy; while those that had sick babies reported problems including meningitis, haemothorax, jaundice and digestive problems.

Most parents reported feeling panic, bewilderment, extreme anxiety and numbness after the birth.

In the research, health care professionals recognised the importance of preparing parents for the realities of a neonatal unit.

One neonatologist from London said: “I think it might be a very scary environment, and in spite of all our efforts to make it more friendly it may still be very scary, strange and violent. It’s an emotional rollercoaster for the parents.”

A neonatal matron from London said a DVD could also prepare staff: “I know very much when the student midwives come in, I would definitely have them come in here and say, ‘Sit down and watch this video about what goes on.’ And that would be good for them, they would understand.”

Small Wonders is being produced by Best Beginnings, a national charity working to break down health inequalities for babies and young children.

Alison Baum, CEO of Best Beginnings, said: “More than one in ten babies in the UK is born prematurely or sick. Many parents feel disempowered and withdraw from their babies. This can mean that preterm or sick babies are deprived of the regular physical touch of their parents or their mother’s breast milk. Best Beginnings wants to make sure all parents of premature or sick babies are aware of the benefits of skin-to-skin contact and breastfeeding, and that health professionals support them to do these things. Small Wonders encourages parents to take an active role in their baby’s care, which is incredibly valuable at the crucial time just after birth.”

Best Beginnings’ first DVD From Bump to Breastfeeding has already been distributed to over 900,000 people in the UK since its launch in November 2008, mostly to pregnant women by their midwives. It is a free resource aimed at supporting and encouraging new mothers in the UK to breastfeed. It is available to all pregnant women in the UK at 28 weeks and should be given to them in the context of a conversation about breastfeeding. Visit the Best Beginnings website http://bestbeginnings.org.uk/ordering-from-bump-to-breastfeeding/ to find out how to order free copies of the DVD.

Small Wonders is expected to be released in 2011, and Best Beginnings is currently raising funds for it. If you can help, please contact the Best Beginnings team on 020 7443 7895 or visit www.bestbeginnings.org.uk to make a donation.

Look out for the upcoming MIDIRS Podcast and interview with Alison Baum.

Alison Baum | Best Beginnings | Photo Credit: Best Beginnings

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