Tomorrow (Friday, September 17) is World Patient Safety Day and this year’s theme is safe maternal and newborn care.
The day is dedicated to the need to prioritise and address safety in maternal and newborn care, particularly around the time of childbirth.
Having a baby is such a special time in your life and during the pandemic we reassured women on every step of their maternity journey to give them the best possible experience.
Throughout the pandemic, our midwives at North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust have been supporting families-to-be in a number of ways, including the production of virtual maternity tours. The videos detail what to expect, the different kinds of rooms and what other facilities are in place for their stay.
It’s important to us that anyone who is coming on the unit feels familiar with their surroundings; even better if they can do that from the comfort of their own homes.
Earlier this year, the Trust opened its first neonatal transitional care areas for babies who require some additional hospital care in the first few days of their lives.
The new areas were developed at the West Cumberland Hospital and the Cumberland Infirmary to enable new mums to stay with their babies while they are being cared for.
Having access to this service helps to support stronger bonding as the babies no longer need to be separated from their mothers while having care and lays the foundation for future relationships.
Lyn Durrant, Assistant Director of Nursing for Children and Young People at NCIC, said: “The aim of the neonatal transitional care ward is to keep mothers and babies together, despite the additional medical interventions that the babies will be receiving.
“We know that early bonding between parents and their babies is so important, and we always try to encourage this where possible.
“It is for this reason that we were so excited to open the new neonatal transitional care areas, as they are designed in such a way to keep babies close to mum, with care brought right to the bedside.”
Staffed by midwives with support from the Special Care Baby Unit, the new areas provide additional support for babies who require tube feeding, intravenous antibiotics and those that are born a little early or those with a low birth weight.
Lyn said: “Our maternity teams work closely with the Special Care Baby Unit to ensure care like this can be provided in the best way possible, with the key aim of keeping mothers and babies together.”
Janet Riley, Midwifery Manager at NCIC, said: “The neonatal transitional care ward is working well. We have a two bedded bay at the West Cumberland Hospital. The primary driver for implementing the service was to keep mothers and babies together wherever possible, as this supports bonding. The number of term babies admitted to SCBU has reduced as a result.”
The new pathway is part of a national drive and part of the Trust’s Maternity Improvement Plan.
For more information visit our maternity webpages.
A special podcast has been produced to tie in with the World Patient Safety Day theme.
It is an excellent listen particularly for those who have questions around vaccinations for pregnant ladies and those that are breastfeeding.
Innovation in Healthcare / Patient Safety - COVID-19 & Pregnancy (audioboom.com)
Led by Karen Hooper , Midwifery Lead for the National Maternity and Neonatal Safety Improvement Programme (MatNeoSIP), Karen hosts a conversation about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic during pregnancy.