New Delhi : With a motive to decrease the risk of mortality and morbity in preterm infants the Safdarjung hospital, Delhi inaugurated Mother-newborn Intensive Care Unit for out born babies.
“World over, it is an established practice to separate the sick new-borns from their mothers and shift them to a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). So the Mothers stay at home or wait in the hospital lounge. Consequently, only few are able to come to the new-born units to attend to their babies. They are allowed to do this only intermittently as a visitor and not as a caregiver. As a result babies do not get much needed for their mother’s breast feed and the Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) (skin to skin contact with mother), said Dr Vandana Talwar, Medical Superintendent, Safdarjung Hospital.
Often these babies are at higher risk of cross infections due to low nurse baby ratio in low-middle income countries. The Dept. of Paediatrics at Safdarjung hospital is the first tertiary care centre in the country to initiate a Mother- Newborn Intensive Care Unit (M-NICU) services for out born babies in 15 bedded Level 3 (Tertiary level) NICU.
“To enable mothers to be with their sick new-borns 24X7, mothers are being provided basic facilities which include food, beds, washrooms etc. within the neonatal intensive care unit (Mother-NICU concept)” said Dr Vandana Talwar, Medical Superintendent, Safdarjung Hospital.
Dr Rajiv Bahl, DG ICMR said, ’Keeping mother and her sick baby together increases the opportunity for prolonged and effective KMC, which is a proven intervention to reduce mortality and early and sustained breastmilk feeding’.
He also added it will revolutionise the way neonatal intensive care is being practiced for babies born early and small.
The research study, New England Journal of Medicine, undertaken at the Paediatrics dept. has shown that, keeping mother and baby together in Mother-NICU led to 25% less mortality at 28 days of life, as well as 35% less incidence of hypothermia (getting cold).
The concern of increased infection with mother’s presence in NICU was also disproved as there was 18% less infection in the new-borns in the M-NICU setting as compared to control babies cared for in conventional NICU.
“Creating Mother- NICU at Safdarjung Hospital is an effective step in the direction of respectful care to mother- baby dyad’ and it will improve mother baby bonding beside reducing the infection rates among babies..” said Dr Rani Gera, Head of Dept., Paediatrics, Safdarjung Hospital.
