Skin to Skin Contact Flashcards
What is skin to skin contact?
Involves placing the dried, naked baby prone on the mother’s bare chest, often covered with a warm blanket
Safe skin to skin contact (6 things)
Ensure baby has been thoroughly dried, with the exception of palms of their hands
Place baby so their chest and abdomen is against mums chest and abdomen (position will vary with cord length and preference)
Ensure baby’s head is turned to the side slightly, so the nose and mouth are free (so baby can breathe)
Cover with warm, dry towels or blankets to protect against heat loss
Check that mum and baby’s body are both well supported (using gravity for security)
Allow instinctual maternal behaviour to adjust the dyads positions
Benefits of skin to skin (7 things)
Stimulates oxytocin and prolactin release
Calms and relaxes baby and mother
Regulates baby’s heart rate and breathing
Regulates baby’s temperature
Stimulates breast-seeking behaviour and interest in feeding
Stimulates endorphin release
Protects baby from infection - colonises their microbiome
Physiology of skin to skin in the first hour (5 things)
Thermal regulation - avoiding hypothermia
An early first feed and higher blood glucose levels (counteract physiological drop in blood glucose after birth)
Encourages baby to familiarise itself with its mothers chest and learn how to locate and self-attach to the breast
Normal transition to extra-utero life, more stable heart rate, respiratory rate and oxygen saturation
Reduction in mean time for placental expulsion
9 stages of neonatal behaviour?
Birth cry
Relaxation
Awakening
Activity
Rest
Crawling
Familiarisation
Suckling
Sleep
Timing of neonatal behaviour
These behaviours only occur in the habitat of the maternal chest - if the baby is removed, it must start these steps again from the beginning, when next put in skin to skin contact
The first hour after birth is a ‘sensitive period’ for programming the baby’s brain for survival behaviours, such as suckling
