November
2017
Rotherham Baby Boxes Land!
Rotherham Midwives have emphasised the importance
of safe sleep by helping to launch the baby box scheme.
New parents and parents-to-be in Rotherham can now
have access to a free baby box, which provides a safe place for baby to sleep
along with one or two other items to help a new family get off to a good start.
Colleagues Dianne Hollis, Infant Feeding Advisor and Debbie Ellis, Infant
Feeding Coordinator have been instrumental in liaising with The Baby Box
Company to bring the initiative to Rotherham.
To receive the box, parents to be need to watch a
short video and answer a quiz via Baby Box University (www.babyboxuniversity.com ) and present their certificate to their midwife are you sure? The baby
box is delivered to the family home. The Baby Box University course is
made up of short video clips, e-books and articles which share important
information about safe and effective care for a young baby.
One of the main messages Baby Box aims to share is
around safe sleeping and steps that parents can take to help reduce sudden
infant death syndrome (SIDs).
Audra Muxlow, Head of Midwifery at The Rotherham
NHS Foundation Trust, said: “The death of a baby devastates not only parents,
but the wider family and community.
“We are committed to doing everything we can to
promote safer sleep and are really excited to be at the stage of handing out
our baby boxes.”
Baby boxes are widely used in Finland, which has
one of the lowest infant mortality rates in the world and now Rotherham is now
just one of a few places in England where parents can benefit from them.
Audra added: “The birth of a baby is the making of
a family and it is a privilege to be part of this initiative.
July 2017
More convenient care for new-mums and mums-to-be!
Midwives
at the Trust are working towards more convenient care for women who have recently
had a baby.
After
mothers and their babies are discharged from hospital or have had a homebirth,
they will receive their first home visit by a midwife. Most women and/or their
babies also require follow up visits. Now, thanks to our innovative, caring midwives, those who require follow up
appointments will have the option of attending a Postnatal Saturday clinic at
Greenoaks.
This
new option means that mothers, if they choose, will not have to wait in at home
for a midwife and will have a specific appointment time which would be easier
to plan their day around.
Follow-up
appointments at the clinic are currently available every Saturday between
9.30am and 4.30pm and are often required for reweighing baby, new born blood
spot tests, breastfeeding/infant feeding support and more. In addition,
expectant mothers close to their due date could also attend the clinic for
their membrane sweep.
Trudy
Hutson, Lead Midwife in Community Midwifery at the Trust, said: “We are really
pleased to provide this alternative option for postnatal appointments and in
the future, we are hoping to provide this on Sundays and Bank Holidays also.
“Many
ladies who have used the clinic are saying how they prefer this to waiting in
at home for a midwife and we have found that being at Greenoaks is
helpful if there are any problems with either mother or baby.
“Home
visits will still be provided for those who are unwell or have no transport,
however any ladies wishing to utilise this new Saturday clinic will be booked
in by a Midwife at their first postnatal visit, the day after they are
discharged home.
“Caring is about looking after our ladies,
providing support and meeting their needs. We are always looking for ways to
improve care for our new-mums and this clinic will give them more options and
further improves access to care.”
Here
is Trudy and her colleagues in Midwifery letting us know what Caring means to them:
Thank you for caring…
Here
is a special ‘thank you midwives’ video developed by the Rotherham Families and
Forging Families (registered charity no.1169482).
‘A video of gratitude and affection to the super midwives
of Rotherham. With love from the families in Rotherham and Forging Families’.
Click the video below or copy the following link into
Google Chrome: https://youtu.be/nfL0vMfbV1g
VIDEO
A fantastic tribute to our caring midwives!
June 2017
Do you have a BFF?
The
Trust has been supporting National Breastfeeding Awareness Week with
accessible, expert advice and support.
May 2017
Seal of approval for maternity services
Colleagues
from our maternity services have recently been reinforcing the Trust’s ‘Baby
Friendly Status’ after having their official plaque presented to them.
International
children’s charity Unicef awarded the Trust the status at the end of 2016
following backing from parents. The status is part of a global programme which
provides a practical and effective way for health services to improve the care
provided for all mothers and babies.
Debbie
Ellis, Infant Feeding Coordinator was there with colleagues to collect the
plaque earlier this week and said: “It is great that we have been recognised
with this award. Everyone here works really hard to provide mums with the
support they need to give their babies the best start in life. What is really
nice about getting the award is that it was as a result of getting backing from
parents.”
You
can read more here .
Well done to everyone for getting this fantastic recognition for
your hard work.
