Wednesday, 1st February 2012
Midwives win award for work with premature babies
Two midwives from Maidstone have won one of the UK’s top midwifery prizes at the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) Annual Awards, for a project that is the first of its kind in the UK.
Sarah Gregson and Jean Meadows from Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust won the Pampers Award for Excellence in Postnatal and Newborn Care. This is for their work along with their colleagues in the Kangaroo Care Team to improve postnatal services for women with preterm and small babies.
The team’s research, into Kangaroo care (where the baby is carried skin to skin by either parent), found that it helps well preterm and small babies cared for in the postnatal ward environment, to go home sooner and to breastfeed successfully. In addition parents feel more confident about caring for their baby and it helps them to bond more easily.
Sarah Gregson, Consultant midwife, who led the project explains that until now, Kangaroo care has been studied in the developing world and neonatal intensive care units in the West. Surprisingly it has not been offered in postnatal wards where an estimated 50,000 preterm babies, who are otherwise well, are cared for in the UK each year.
Sarah said: “It was the first time this kind of research had been carried out and we were delighted to find such good results. The study was published last year in the British Journal of Midwifery and we hope the success of our project will lead to a change in the way maternity units care for these babies across the country.”
The research led to the development of a charitable project making KangaWraps for Kangaroo Care in fair-trade conditions with all profits from sales supporting maternal and child health charities in developing countries. Since October 2011, cash raised has been able to support two community health workers with a project in the slums of Delhi.
Marian Adams and Jane Jeal, senior midwives who work on the ward at Tunbridge Wells are also passionate about Kangaroo care. “We think the babies feed much better, are more settled and ultimately get home quicker,” said Marian.
“Parents tell us they feel more confident handling their baby and they really enjoy the experience of having their baby so close.”
“Cathy Warwick, chief executive of the Royal College of Midwives, said: “This demonstrates that there is wonderful and ground-breaking work being done by midwives and I congratulate Sarah and Jean on winning this award.
“Midwifery practice is always moving forward and innovating. This shows that if we give midwives the resources and the freedom to do this, the result is better services for women, babies and their families.”
Dr Gillian Marsh, Technical External Relations Manager at Pampers, who sponsor the award, said: “Pampers understands the important role that midwives play in society. That’s why we are proud to support an award such as this, which recognises the hard work that midwives like Sarah and Jean are doing and their dedication to the profession and the mums and babies in their care.”
Ends
Notes to editors
For more information contact the RCM Press Office on 020 7312 3456, pressofficer@rcm.org.uk.
For information about Pampers, contact Rachel Bowden at the Pampers Press Office:
020 7395 7127 / Rachel.Bowden@Fleishmaneurope.com
Pampers® and the Royal College of Midwives - working together for the support and wellbeing of mothers and babies every step of the way. Pampers is one of the leading baby care brands. Everything that Pampers does begins from a child's perspective – seeing the world through the eyes of a baby. For 50 years Pampers has worked with parents and tens of thousands of babies around the world to better understand baby development.
From product development to communication, Pampers learns from babies, which in turn gives adults the opportunity to experience the world as a baby does and learn how to make it better.
For more information visit www.pampers.co.uk
The Royal College of Midwives is the voice of midwifery. We are the UK’s only trade union and professional organisation led by midwives for midwives. The vast majority of the midwifery profession are our members. The RCM promotes midwifery, quality maternity services and professional standards. We support and represent our members individually and collectively in all four UK countries. We influence on behalf of our members and for the interests of the women and families for which they care. For more information visit the RCM website at www.rcm.org.uk
