Chairs for Special Care Fundraiser

If you don't know me yet you will soon find out that I am mad about babies and new families.  It is all of that unmanifested potential, all of that anticipation, and at the same time the complete grounding into the here and now that a baby creates in a family.  It is a huge time of growth for both the baby and the parents.   It is challenging at the best of times but throw in a baby who is born early or sick or both and you have the recipe for a very challenging time.  Sometimes it is the simple things that make the biggest difference.  For the baby, the very most important thing that can be done is to be held naked (except for a nappy) skin to skin with its mother or father.  My years working as a Lactation Consultant taught me the following things about the benefits of skin to skin care.

Baby
Cries 10x less than bassinette babies

Better Sleep

Temperature is warmer

Heart rate is more stable

Breathing is more regular and more reliable

Stress Hormones are Lower

Stimulates feeding instincts and increases the chance she will be breastfed.

Introduces family bacteria (this is a good thing) not hospital bacteria to the baby

Decreases hospital stay (for prem babies)

Helps babies better learn to deal with stress as they grow older

Decreases pain experience if baby has had a traumatic delivery

Is the perfect place to recover from a painful delivery or procedure

Teaches intimacy

Mother

Kicks in Endorphines makes her feel good

Encourages bonding with baby

Stimulates milk supply

Helps her learn how to read her baby

Removes the clutter that can sometimes get in the way of a good latch

Takes her mind off of the pain of labour or surgery discomfort

Encourages "let down" of milk.

Support Person

Helps him/her to bond with baby

Gives them something he can do to further support mum

Can help him learn to be responsive to baby

So now imagine your baby was born early and you had to spend all of your time in a hospital with them.  The most basic thing you would want would be a comfortable chair so that you could hold your baby close and help heal them faster so that you could get home right?  Unfortunately due to budget constraints the chair situation in the Special Care Unit at the Hutt Hospital is in a sad, sad, state.  They are cracked, dirty, and down right falling apart.  Adele Sullivan the head of the Unit has been trying to find ways to get the funds for the chairs but her hands are completely tied by the budget.  So we are trying to help raise money for these chairs.  At the moment there are only 2 comfortable in good nick chairs on the unit.  The rest are in various states of falling apart and at anyone time there up to 15 families sharing the two good chairs.

So here is how you can help:

For $75.00 you will get a voucher for $550.00 for my studio.  There are only 5 of these vouchers available each month.  We will continue this special until we have replaced all of the chairs on the Unit.

REGISTER for the SCBU Chairs Special Here