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Assessment in the Early Years
Dr. A. Bakshi
Brazelton Neonatal Assessment Scale (BNAS)

Individual test
For infants between 3 days and 8 weeks of age
Index of a newborn’s competence
Developed in 1973 by a Howard pediatrician, Dr. T. Berry Brazelton and his colleagues.
Produces 47 scores: 27 behavioral items and 20 elicited responses
BNAS: Special Contributions
When the Scale was published in the early 1970s, people were just beginning to appreciate the infant 's full breadth of capabilities, and the only tests available were designed to detect abnormalities.
The Scale was designed to go beyond available assessments by revealing the infant 's strengths and range of individuality, while still providing a health screen. …show more content…

Generally, the child blinks and squirms in irritation. When we repeat the process several times, the infant usually tunes out the stimulation and remains asleep.
The baby 's ability to ignore the stimulation allows her to conserve energy and to develop. If a baby has trouble blocking out stimulation during the exam, parents will know that they need to support their child, perhaps by being quiet or keeping her from bright light.
The Fourth Developmental Task
Finally, when an infant 's autonomic, motor and state systems are in equilibrium, she is ready to interact socially, the ultimate developmental task.
The Scale shows how babies are ready to be engaged in their new world from the first moments of life.
In this portion of the assessment, the examiner looks to see how a baby follows a red ball, a face and a voice. It is a powerful experience for parents to see their new child respond to their voices or study their faces.

BNAS: Other examples
For example, one part of the exam looks at an infant 's ability to self-console when she is upset. Some infants console themselves easily, while others have a more difficult time. If the infant cannot console herself, the examiner takes measured steps to help her.
Not only do we learn how much support the infant may need at home, but also how far along the child is at completing her developmental agenda.

BNAS: Reputation
“The greatest breadth of the available neonatal

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