ASSESSMENT OF FAMILY’S READINESS TO CARE FOR A NEWBORN AT

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Friday, 25 November 2022 6:13 AM

- It is important to assess how prepared each family is to care for their newborn at home, to be sure the newborn
remains safe.
- Parents may need to make changes in their routine, such as shifting their usual dinner time or work schedule. Sleep
schedules are certain to be disrupted, because infants wake during the night for one or more feedings for about the
first 4 months of life.
- The physical environment of the home to which a newborn will be discharged is a good subject to explore with
parents.
- Good prenatal and postnatal care is wasted if an infant contracts pneumonia during the first week at home because
no one at a hospital or a birthing center took the time to ask the right questions about the home environment.

INTERVENTIONS IN DIFFERENT SCENARIOS

DAILY HOME CARE
- Newborns thrive on a gentle rhythm of care, a sense of being able to anticipate what is to come next. Your aim
in helping parents plan their schedule of care is to arrive at one that:
○ Offers a degree of consistency (a mother cannot expect an infant to stay awake until midnight 5 nights a
week, then go to sleep at 7:00 PM on the sixth night)
○ Appears to satisfy the infant
○ Gives the parents a sense of well-being and contentment with their child

SLEEP PATTERNS
- A newborn sleeps an average of 16 of every 24 hours during the first week home, an average of 4 hours at a
time. By 4 months of age, an infant sleeps an average of 15 hours of every 24 and through the night.
- It is exhausting for a parent who is already tired from labor and birth to have to awaken during the night to feed
a newborn. For this reason, parents may try various methods to induce a baby to sleep through the night much
earlier than 4 months.
- A baby probably wakes every 4, 5, 6, or 8 hours because of a physiologic need for fluid. Advise parents that,
because of this fluid need, they should not try to eliminate night feedings.
- Knowing their baby is not sick, that you are concerned and willing to listen to their questions, and that every
other parent of a newborn is also up at night does not solve the difficulty of interrupted sleep, but it is a help.
- They should be certain their infant does not sleep on the stomach, because there is an association between this
sleeping position and SIDS (Richardson, Walker, & Horne, 2008.
- They also need to use an approved crib with a firm mattress that is free of stuffed animals and toys. Placing a
fan in the room and sucking on a pacifier may also reduce the possibility of SIDS as the infant stirs and sucks
periodically and does not fall as deeply asleep.

CRYING
- Many new parents are not prepared for the amount of time a newborn spends crying. Infants, however,
typically cry an average of 2 of every 24 hours during the first 7 weeks of life. The frequency seems to peak at
age 6 or 7 weeks and then tapers off.
- New parents need to recognize this as normal and not worry that it means their child is ill. Parents might use
this fussy time for bathing or playing with the infant, arranging their schedules accordingly. It is important to
learn the infant’s cues and to help the infant learn to self-quiet.

PARENTAL CONCERNS RELATED TO BREATHING

- Some parents report that their newborns have stuffy noses or make snoring noises in their sleep and that they
sneeze frequently. This occurs because most newborns continue to have some mucus in the upper respiratory
tract and posterior pharynx for up to 2 weeks after birth.
- A new parent may wake at night, notice this breathing pattern, and grow alarmed that the baby is in respiratory
distress. If these are the only symptoms, this is a normal newborn respiratory pattern.
- If the child has rhinitis (nasal discharge) or a fever, he or she needs to be seen by a health care provider,
because these symptoms suggest an upper respiratory tract infection.

CONTINUED HEALTH MAINTENANCE FOR A NEWBORN

- Make certain that parents make and keep a health care appointment for a first newborn assessment according

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 - Make certain that parents make and keep a health care appointment for a first newborn assessment according
to their primary care provider’s schedule (2 to 6 weeks).
- The mother was conscientious throughout pregnancy to bring a well child into the world. Parents must now
begin a health care program to keep the child well.

BREASTFEEDING

MOTHER AND BABY FRIENDLY HOSPITAL INITIATIVE (MBFHI)

- Program by Department of Health (DOH) launched in 1992 pursuant to the:
○ Republic Act 7600
○ Republic Act 10028
○ Executive Order 51

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