Transitional care
Our Maternity Unit
provide Transitional care facilities on its postnatal wards.
Transitional care is offered to babies who require extra care or observations after birth, but do not require admission to the Special Care Baby Unit.
There are several reasons why a baby may require additional observations after they are born.
This may be for a very short period (#40;1-2 hours) or over a longer period of time depending on the reason the observations were started and the clinical condition of the baby.
Transitional care enables staff to detect early signs of illness in a baby, effectively escalate concerns and make effective plans of care.
Babies who will require Transitional Care include (this list is not exhaustive):
- Babies whose mother was known to have Group B streptococcus bacteria (GBS) in pregnancy
- Babies born over 24 hours after the waters brake (prolonged rupture of membranes/'PROM')
- Babies born between 35 – 37 weeks who do not require admission to the Special Care Baby Unit, but still need some extra support
- Small babies suspected of having inter uterine growth restriction 'IUGR'
- Babies of diabetic mothers needing extra help
- Babies who were distressed at birth
The midwives, alongside neonatal nurses and nursery nurses will care for you and your baby.
Your baby will be allocated an experienced qualified nursery nurse to observe and monitor your baby's temperature, heartbeat, respiratory rate, and sometimes blood sugar level.
Your baby's feeds may be recorded, and you will receive experienced guidance and support to feed your baby.
A neonatal Nurse or a neonatal doctor will monitor and plan your baby's care.
