Mothers And Their Newborn Babies Care After Discharge : A Review Of Supporting Maternal Transition : Continuity, Coaching

Postpartum depression (PPD) is a major event occurring in eight to fifteen percent of the woman population after delivering their child (Glavin, Smith, Sørum & Ellefsen, 2010). The symptoms and causes of PPD are similar to depression symptoms in other periods of life (Glavin et al., 2010). These symptoms may include feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, loss of interest in daily activities, sleep changes, anger or irritability, loss of energy, self-loathing, reckless behavior and concentration problems. These symptoms may lead to other factors that are detrimental to the child bearing and rearing family.

To help prevent this issue I have created a program for the Fairfax hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) to facilitate the bond between mother and child while both are recovering and being cared for. The pilot program called “rooming-in” allows mother and child to be on the same private room where other family can also stay. The room will be designed to give maximum support to both mother and baby by having all resources in room as well as a private team of nurses.

"Why do so many women continue to suffer?" Asked Psychotherapist Karen Kleimen in her recent article on postpartum depression in a well-known medical magazine, Psychology Today. "Why is it that postpartum depression and its related conditions continue to be misunderstood by so many healthcare professionals?" Followed Karen. After being constantly bombarded with terrifying effects and the rising number of cases of postpartum depression, many women are raising similar questions as those of Karen and are demanding satisfactory answers from healthcare providers. As a result, healthcare providers have conducted several research and concluded a number of potential causes for postpartum depression.

Pregnancy and birth are both major changes in the lives of women everywhere. These events can be overwhelming, and can lead many women to experience feelings of depression, which can result in postpartum depression, a serious condition that can adversely affect the health of mother and child. The following PowerPoint aims to help educate women on the symptoms and causes of postpartum depression, and how to differentiate it from the normal feelings that can occur with childbirth. Finally, it seeks to provide resources to women for diagnosis, treatment, and support.

Adequate discharge instructions are essential before releasing a patient from the hospital. Inadequate instructions could lead to hospital readmissions, adverse events after leaving the hospital, misuse of medical equipment or medicine, failure to follow-up with providers, and can increase the cost to the patient in the end. This is no different in the postpartum period. New mothers and fathers are expected to leave the hospital knowing everything about taking care of a newborn, and these hospital stays keep getting shorter. In the Mercy Ardmore facility, mothers and babies are discharged in 24 hours after a vaginal delivery and 48 hours after a cesarean section, as long as there are no medical complications. This leaves little time to teach new parents all there is to know about newborn

It is important to note that the determination for women at risk of Postpartum Depression is very difficult to define. However different meta-analyses have shown that there are mild or even strong associations between certain risk factors and women with Postpartum Depression (Kettunen et al. 2014). Such risk factors are a history of depression, stressful and traumatic life events, poor marital relationships and poor social support. Interestingly, some stressful life events such as an unplanned pregnancy and difficult child temperaments are not as strongly associated with postpartum.

The hypothesis whether effective coping strategies can reduce post-partum stress in mothers with newborn babies will be supported from results derived from a cross tabulation analysis, posttest non-experimental survey and it is expected to show that post-partum stress levels will be reduced in mothers with a newborn baby if they properly utilize stress relieving methods that include support systems, planning tactics and making time for themselves. Prior research has proven that post-partum stress when left untreated will increase a mother’s exposure to other psychological disorders such as post-partum depression, as well as negative effects on maternal-infant attachment and child development and it has been identified as a major health problem

The second section focused on the act of labor and delivery, including first three hours of infant birth, followed by postpartum care and breastfeeding. The speaker spoke about the current practices that occur within the hospital's labor and delivery department. When speaking about delayed cord clamping, she discussed why this is important and even mentioned the volume of blood an infant lacks when the umbilical cord is clammed or cut too soon after birth. While discussing breastfeeding, she briefly mentioned infant blood glucose screenings, and the evidence that is published regarding encouraging breastfeeding within the first hour of

Soon to be parents dream of having the perfect pregnancy. A pregnancy that is free of making difficult decisions for mom and baby, no complications with their pregnancy and free from any worries about the health of their newborn baby. All soon to be parents hope that ultimately the will give birth that result in a healthy newborn baby that they will take home to nurture and love. For far too many families this dream is shattered in the delivery room after giving birth. Their awful reality of this situation is suddenly something mommy and daddy have to try and comprehend and accept, because they are going to become a part of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) parents.

Birth - Delivery and postnatal care is usually provided by a Mid-wife. Female family members will deliver care and support to the mother and newborn for the post-natal period, which is around 40-41 days, when customarily during this time the mother and newborn remain at home. In addition the female family members arrange meals and care for the husband and other children as well.

Evidence has shown what mothers and newborns need after birth, each other. There are many opportunities for skin-to-skin care and breastfeeding. Nurses and healthcare professionals must support the physiological need that mothers and newborns have for each other after the birthing process. It is crucial that the nurses recognize the short- and long­term health benefits for the mothers and newborns that result from skin-to-skin care. Therefore, as healthcare professionals it is important to educate the patients and prevent separation of a mother and her newborn as a healthy birth

As a midwifery student, the author has worked with two women, within the Continuity of Care Experience, who have been induced for post-term pregnancy. Reflections have been written about the care these women received and are located in the authors Continuity of Care Experience reflective journals under the pseudonyms RO’B and EE. The purpose of this portfolio is to explore current midwifery practice in relation to this event which can turn an uncomplicated pregnancy into a complex labour and birth. Current literature will be reviewed to determine best practice in care provision for woman who are post-term and a recommendation will be made on how midwifery practice can improve outcomes for women whose pregnancies progress past term. For

The presence of staff has been strongly correlated with an increase in initiation and duration of breastfeeding (Amir et al., 2010). Staff in the antenatal and early postnatal period play an integral role in assisting mothers to initiate breastfeeding (Amir et al., 2010). During the postnatal period, duration of breastfeeding can be increased through providing positive support, problem solving and continual patient education (Brand et al., 2011). A barrier to a lack of support during the early postnatal time in hospitals is that there is a 1:8 ratio of midwife to woman/baby leading to a limit in time with women and therefore support in the critical early stages of initiation of breastfeeding (Amir et al., 2010; Kervin et al.,

Some things that many obstetrical nurses hold very important just minutes after delivery are skin-to-skin care, otherwise known as kangaroo care, and breastfeeding. As a result of working in a hospital that currently abides by the Baby Friendly Initiative, we as nurses strive to support bonding as well as promote breastfeeding exclusively and strive to educate so that new families may continue to do so at home. Bonding should be promoted throughout the entire hospitalization and nurses are responsible for many aspects regarding this. As nurses, we know that some of the benefits of kangaroo care immediately after birth are the stabilization of vital signs, decreased pain, and

Beck, C. T. (1991). Early postpartum discharge: Literature review and critique. Women and Health, 17, 125-138.