Document Type
Case Report
Department
School of Nursing and Midwifery, Pakistan
Abstract
Skin-to-skin contact (SSC) is the practice in which a newborn is dried and placed immediately on mother’s chest. Both the mother and the baby gains benefits from this as it aids in breastfeeding and helps baby adjust to temperature outside the mother’s womb. However, not many midwives in hospitals carry out this crucial practice. Staff shortage, lack of awareness and time constraints were identified as the main determinants because SSC was not implemented. Realistic measures should be taken to enhance SSC as discussed in the paper. Thus, promotion of SSC soon after childbirth will be advantageous for neonatal quality of care if considered as a routine practice.
Case: During the Community Health Nursing clinical rotation, I was assigned to a secondary hospital’s labor room. A woman aged 29 years, gravida 3 para 2+0, 37 weeks pregnant delivered a baby boy via normal delivery. As soon as the baby was born, the nurse dried, cleaned, and immediately took the baby to a radiant warmer instead of keeping the baby on mother’s chest for skin- to -skin contact. Only after completing the newborn care and wrapping the baby, he was given to the mother for breastfeeding.
Recommended Citation
Al-Noor, A. Why skin-to-skin contact is not made a traditional practice right after childbirth? Hindrances behind its non-implementation. Journal of Asian Midwives. 2022;9(2):20–26.
