Have you ever noticed how some practices in the NICU are done differently based on what caregiver is at the bedside? Skin-to-Skin for example. Have you noticed how sometimes its encouraged, sometimes its offered to be done on the next shift, sometimes its discouraged, and sometimes its not even talked about? Or have you noticed that when Skin-to-Skin is done, it’s done differently depending on who is present. Have you ever thought how confusing and frustrating that is for parents, who are trying to do what their heroes (yes, that’s you) tell them to do, but the person yesterday told them to do it completely different?
It seems like this happens in NICUs around the country. NICU caregiving practices like Skin-to-Skin and Swaddled Bathing are present, but are inconsistent in their practice. Parents are told several different ways to do them, and get frustrated and confused trying to figure out which way is best. Nurses have read a policy on the practice but interpret it differently or don’t understand the process.
These are a few of the reasons why we developed the Skin-to-Skin and Swaddled Bathing Instructional DVDs for both Healthcare Providers and Parents. The DVDs for parents are less than 15 minutes long so parents don’t have to take a lot of time away from their infant to watch it. In fact, they can watch it at their infant’s bedside on a portable DVD player! These DVDs give the parents the understanding, ability and comfort to provide these caregiving activities, while encouraging them to talk with their healthcare provider about their infant’s readiness for these caregiving activities. The videos of “real” NICU or SCN babies doing Skin-to-Skin or having a Swaddled Bath help them really learn how to do these activities, and know what their role is in it. Having parents watch the DVDs is an easy way to increase parent satisfaction and decrease time spent by nursery staff explaining these caregiving practices. In fact, you may want to talk to your hospital’s gift shop about offering these parent DVDs. What a great gift for a new mom with an infant in the NICU!
Likewise, the DVDs for healthcare providers are all under 25 minutes, so they can be shown in staff meetings or yearly competencies. The goal is to have 100% of the bedside caregivers watch the DVDs so they know the research, special considerations, and how to safely provide Skin-to-Skin and Swaddled Bathing in the NICU. The DVDs can also be used for new employee orientation so the practices can continue regardless of who is at the bedside. Because much of the video footage shown in the DVDs is the same in both parent and healthcare provider DVDs, it significantly increases the consistency, safety, and practice of these important, evidence-based caregiving practices in the NICU or SCN.
Watch a DVD today…You’ll be glad you did! (You can watch the video vignettes for the DVDs below by click on the pictures, or by choosing them above under Products.)
