More than one in ten babies in the UK is born prematurely or sick.
Some 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.
We want to make sure all parents of premature or sick babies are aware of the benefits of skin-to-skin contact and breast milk, and that health professionals support them to do these things.
Our Small Wonders DVD will encourage parents to take an active role in their baby’s care, which is incredibly valuable at the crucial time just after birth.
The DVD will be split into 12 films, each lasting no longing than 20 minutes and covering specific areas of help and support:
- Introduction to Small Wonders and the neonatal unit
- Birth and your baby’s transfer into a neonatal unit
- The early hours and days in a neonatal unit
- Expressing, breast milk and nutrition
- Holding your baby
- Your time in hospital
- Transition to independent feeding
- Going home
- First months at home
- More about twins and triplets
- Coping with bereavement
- One year on – reflections from our families
Small Wonders will show parents how to care for their baby when they have been born under difficult or unusual circumstances. It is the first DVD of its kind and follows real parents’ experiences of having a sick or premature baby.
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 is also intended to support healthcare professionals by providing evidence-based information about the benefits family-centred care and by demonstrating and encouraging best practice. Click here for more information on the evidence behind Small Wonders.