Are you ready for World Prematurity Month?

ICKLE PICKLES CHILDREN’S CHARITY

The Alliance works with Ickle Pickles Children’s Charity to raise awareness of babies born too soon

In the UK, one in thirteen babies are born prematurely (before 37 weeks of pregnancy). A high percentage of these babies require treatment in a neonatal unit and may need more support in pre-schools, nurseries or childminding settings.

November is World Prematurity Month, a month dedicated to raising awareness of the needs of premature babies and their families worldwide. It’s also a month for celebrating those that have made it through difficult periods with their premature babies and gone on to thrive.

We at Ickle Pickles have made it our mission to give every newborn a chance, functioning as a charity that helps hospitals raise money to buy essential equipment for premature babies nationally. We provide much-needed intensive and special-care equipment, dedicating our time and expertise with families affected by premature birth.

For World Prematurity Month, we are sharing some tips on how you can help prem babies thrive, because we know how important it is to support vulnerable babies and families who have experienced neonatal care.

While each neonatal journey is different, we want to share one story that particularly touched us.

Michelle experienced a frightening and emotional birth via emergency C-section at just 24 weeks pregnant. Beautiful Charlotte was born weighing just 518 grams (1lb 2oz) – the same as a small bag of sugar – and spent the next 16 weeks in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Michelle remembers her time as a NICU parent as challenging: “You feel like you are existing in a bubble while the normal world continues all around you.”

Meeting her new baby for the first time after she’d recovered was this “completely unreal experience” of “seeing this tiny baby attached to so many wires and monitors, in an incubator, completely helpless”. Many NICU parents recall the beeping and humming machines being the soundtrack to their lives in the NICU.

Every day is different and can change quickly. Despite picking up some dangerous infections, baby Charlotte became stronger each week. Each milestone hit gave her parents hope and excitement for the future. Michelle learnt about the importance of blood gases, oxygen requirements and infection control – but she also experienced a range of emotions as their NICU journey continued: fear, sadness, excitement, guilt, disengagement and helplessness. When Charlotte was finally well enough, she was transferred to a more local hospital, which meant her family no longer had to travel 525 miles a week to see her. Thanks to all the care teams, Charlotte was finally discharged just after her due date.

Later, she attended two separate nursery settings where all staff were made aware of Charlotte’s early entry into the world. For premature babies, reaching developmental milestones may take a little longer. Charlotte was delayed in hitting some developmental milestones, so nursery staff supported her in the areas she struggled with.

One nursery educator recognised that Charlotte showed signs of delays in some of her gross motor skills and would need physio support. The nursery then referred her to an occupational therapist, who advised on exercises to strengthen her core muscles. The nursery’s proactive approach, alongside the timely support of the occupational therapist, helped to alleviate her parents’ worries.

Thanks to all the excellent care in the NICU and her dedicated nursery staff, Charlotte is now thriving at school.

The increasing incidence of premature birth and the improving survival rates mean that you might look after a child born prematurely in your setting. A short stay in a neonatal unit can often be overlooked. We hope you will join us this World Prematurity Month to raise awareness of the challenges of premature birth.

Explore some of Ickle Pickles’ World Prematurity Day ideas for showing NICU families that they are not alone at: https://bit.ly/IcklePicklesFundraisingIdeas.

The colour purple is seen as most synonymous with World Prematurity Day on Friday 17 November, so wearing something purple is a great way to show your support. You could ask everyone to donate £1 and wear something purple, even if it’s something subtle like a ribbon, scarf, tie or hairband.

Together, we can make a difference and help raise awareness of babies like Charlotte as well as help others during World Prematurity Month.

To get involved and find out more, visit icklepickles.org.

It’s important to note that while some parents and carers of premature children may feel their child is ready to start school or pre-school in line with their actual birth date, others may feel it would be better for their child to start school a bit later, in line with their projected birth date or corrected age. It’s different for every family’s experience.

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