Hospital offers parents up-to-date courses

Press, 21 July 1982, Page 17

Hospital offers parents up-to-date courses

Parent education at Christchurch Women's Hospital has come a long way towards meeting modern parental demands in the last couple of years, according to an article in the "Pulse" magazine of the North Canterbury Hospital Board. The outdated courses, with their emphasis on "mothercraft" and labour, were replaced last year with a comprehensive. modern, nine-ses-sion course for both the expectant parents covering a wide range of relevant topics.

Changing attitudes and expectations of the parents as well as the encouragement of fathers to be present at the birth (a board policy since 1975) brought about the development of the new programme. The main aim of the programme is to prevent fear, pain, and discomfort in labour and birth, through education of expectant mothers and their partners on the physiology of labour and the mechanics of the birth; the abnormal situations that may develop during the birth: and how these can be managed by midwives and doctors with the mother's consent, the article savs.

Expectant parents, for ex-

ample, can learn about the indications for needing a caesarian section, and realise that the mother can still be conscious throughout the operation, and be able to see, hear, and hold her baby when it is born. The other main aim of the programme is to. prevent physical health problems such as malnutrition, allergies related to food, obesity, heart disease and injuries to children from accidents. NewZealand ranks second highest in the world’s developed countries for accident and death to children under five vears.

The prevention of mental and emotional problems in the baby as it grows up is a main theme of the course. Parents are educated on the emotional needs of babies and children, their need for love, touching and cuddling, and intensive nurturing and breast feeding during the first few months.

The course strongly supports the involvement of the father in the birth and subsequent development of the child. Fathers are encouraged to go into postnatal wards at Christchurch Women’s Hospital at bath time, and to carry their babies in front-packs during their early weeks of life.

Open visiting for fathers at the hospital (from 7 a m. to 10 p.m.) is now an accepted practice. This year, daily parent education sessions have begun in the post-natal wards so that parent education information can be available for those who have not attended the hospital's antenatal classes. Staff members of the hospital as well as people in the community are involved in the programme, and many give their time free of charge. These . include parents. former nursing staff, nursing mothers, hospital dietitians, the Le Leche League, general practitioners, the Family Planning Clinic, hospital doctors, social workers and familytherapists. and safety consultants from the Accident Compensation Corpora--I>£ll