Neonatal Intensive Care Unit awareness month: NCT supports NICU parents with infant feeding support across the UK

In the UK, around 8 in 100 babies are born prematurely every year, often requiring care in NICU.  

Neonatal units are hospital wards for babies requiring special care. NICU is the highest level of care for babies. Babies might require neonatal care for the following reasons:  

•    Severe jaundice;
•  Sickness such as infections or congenital medical conditions;
•  Being born prematurely (before the pregnancy has reached 37 weeks).  

Having a baby in NICU can be a stressful time for parents and families, and it can also impact their feeding journey. NCT provides a variety of services and projects across the UK that help NICU families with infant feeding support during this emotionally challenging time.  

• In Lancashire, a team of NCT Peer Supporters offers parents infant feeding support in five postnatal and NICU wards. This includes how to use a breast pump, maintain milk supply, initiate breastfeeding or bottle feeding, and even how to tandem feed for twins or multiples, as well as someone to talk to during this time. Once discharged, families also have access to further support in the form of phone calls, video calls, groups, home visits and online support.  
• In Peterborough, Fenland, Huntington, and North Cambridgeshire the NCT Pump Loan Scheme project provides NICU families and those on a low-income with access to breast pumps, which are often only available for a limited time in hospital.

Cassi Legat, who leads the NCT North Lancashire Commissioned Infant Feeding Project and provides infant feeding support for parents with babies in NICU said:  

“Babies in NICU may be unable to feed orally either initially or on a more permanent basis. This means that a high percentage of parents will be using a breast pump from birth; knowing what to expect, how to efficiently express and hand expressing techniques can make a big difference to establishing and maintaining milk supply.  

“Families may then need support in transitioning to feeding directly at the breast, if this is something they wish to do, which can look different for babies that may be smaller than average or be attached to various machines. A high percentage of babies that are multiples will also spend some time in the NICU, so parents may wish for support with tandem feeding positions or may have babies being fed in different ways.”

“It really is a privilege to be able to support families in what is often a stressful time whether it is with information around expressing, positioning and attachment or just to be a listening ear. In my experience, families in NICU need a listening ear more than anyone; they are often dealing with difficult situations and intense medical conversations. To be able to talk to someone without medical jargon or pressure can be vital.  

“Babies in NICU often transition through different forms of feeding and additional support in these times can really help parents to meet their feeding goals. Often when families do go home there is a drop off in support generally, knowing that NCT are still there for them in the community can be very reassuring.,”

Gemma Francis, who is the Service Engagement Lead of NCT Birth, Feeding & You and runs the NCT’s Pump Loan Scheme in Peterborough, Fenland, Huntington, and North Cambridgeshire, as well as being a trained NCT Breastfeeding Counsellor said:

“Having a baby in NICU can be an emotional and stressful time for parents. The pump project helps take away another element of stress in this difficult time.  

“Quite often, families with a baby in NICU can only have the pumps from the hospital for a short period of time. However, the reality is that a lot of families need them for more than a few weeks. That’s where we come in to help! These families can be referred to us and borrow a pump. All pumps are the same model as the ones used by NICU so many of the parents already know how to use them.

“Having a baby in NICU can be quite a difficult start to the parenthood journey. Often, parents just want to have someone to talk to about their experience. A lot of the times, I come to an appointment to deliver a pump, but this appointment often turns into the parents sharing their experiences and stories. with me. It’s all about providing emotional support to these families.”

NCT believes that very parent should have access to unbiased, non-judgemental, and timely support with feeding their babies. For more information on infant feeding services, please visit https://www.nct.org.uk/about-us/community-support-programmes/breastfeeding-support-services