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We are there to listen – caring for bereaved families
During Baby Loss Awareness Week (9 to 15 October), the maternity bereavement team at the West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust are highlighting the work they do with families, and reminding people how important it is to allow families to talk about their loss.
Bereavement midwife Justine Ladds, midwife Trudi Phizacklea and maternity support worker Claire Bayly support families who have experienced the loss of a baby due to miscarriage over 16 weeks, interruption of a pregnancy due to a fetal anomaly, stillbirth and neonatal death.
Justine said, “We are there to listen. We are never going to be able to take their grief away, but we can show that we care for them and their baby. The loss of a baby is a massive bereavement and is life changing for families.
“During and after a woman has delivered her baby, we care for families and their babies on the labour suite in our bereavement room, the Jasmine suite,” she explained. “We have cosy cots so babies can remain in the room with the parents to allow them to spend as much time with their baby as possible. Following discharge home, parents regularly choose to come back to spend further time with their baby until the time of the funeral. It is vital they spend as much time with their baby as possible if that is what they would like to do.”
Justine said that subsequent pregnancies are an extremely stressful and anxious time for families. “Parents need lots extra support in subsequent pregnancies. We have a Rainbow clinic on a Thursday afternoon where we see these families alongside an obstetric consultant to provide continuity of care. We have longer appointment times so we are able to provide additional support as this is almost always required.
“There is a hesitancy to discuss baby loss as people don’t like talking about it, but mostly families really want to talk about their baby that has died. If you know somebody that has gone through the loss of a baby and you see them, just say ‘I’m so sorry I’m here for you if you need anything’. The worst thing you can do is say nothing or avoid them.”
Clare Bayly is involved in a loss pathway which has recently been launched in partnership with East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT). “This is a joint service which is aimed at supporting parents who are really struggling with their mental health,” said Justine.
Baby Loss Awareness Week runs from the 9 to 15 October is a global event now in its 22nd year. It is an opportunity to give anyone touched by pregnancy and baby loss a safe and supportive space to share their experiences and feel they are not alone.
The maternity bereavement team, members of the hospital early pregnancy team and befrienders from the local SANDS support group will be in the foyer of the West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds during the week, sharing information and providing support. They will be there from Wednesday, 9 to Friday, 11 October, and Monday and Tuesday 14 and 15 October between 8.00am and 4.00pm.
On Thursday, 10 October between 10.00am and 2.00pm there will be a cake sale in the hospital chapel, and all money raised will be shared between My WiSH Charity and the local SANDS group. My WiSH, the Trust charity, work hard to provide beautiful memory boxes used to provide families with precious memories of their baby.
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