Skin to skin contact

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This week McMaster Children’s Hospital is taking part in the kangaroo challenge. It’s a friendly competition where neonatal hospitals try to get babies into their parents’ arms so they can reap the benefits of skin to skin contact.

Elliot was born on April 9th at 29 weeks, now weighing just 1250 grams, he passes most of his day in an incubator in McMaster’s neonatal intensive care unit, except for the skin to skin time he spends with his mom and dad. “As soon as I got him I felt just so comfortable having him on me and he was comfortable. It was just so nice to hold him after so many hours of not seeing him and being in a different part of the hospital.” Mom, Jodi Green, holds him against her chest for 4 or 5 hours a day, each one counting towards McMaster’s total in the kangaroo challenge.

Sunnybrook hospital in Toronto has challenged hospitals across Ontario to rack up as many holding hours as they can in 2 weeks. McMaster has already met their goal of 800.

The aim is to promote the benefits of kangaroo care- named for a kangaroo’s close contact with her joey. “It’s especially important for premature babies. Contact with mom’s skin actually helps babies regulate their temperatures better. It’s almost in some ways a better incubator than the incubators that we have.”  Says Dr. Jennifer Twiss.

The benefits of kangaroo care extend to full term babies as well. It can improve breast milk production, reduce postpartum depression and help parents form a bond with their baby.