Family-Centered Care Services for Antepartum and Neonatology Families

The Family-Centered Care services below are available to families of neonatology and hospitalized antepartum (Johnson Center for Pregnancy and Newborn Services) patients.
 

Parent Mentors

Antepartum and neonatology parent mentors have experience with hospitalization during pregnancy, premature births, multiple births, and/or neonatal illness. They are trained to provide peer support to expectant mothers or parents of current infant inpatients.
 
Please contact your social worker if you would like to meet with a parent mentor.
 
Antepartum Unit 
Our two Antepartum Unit parent mentors provide weekly mentoring sessions to women hospitalized before the birth of their child(ren). They both spent substantial time as patients in the Antepartum Unit during their own pregnancies.
 
Parent mentors visit expectant mothers at the bedside and provide support, validation and information about the antepartum experience. Mentoring sessions vary in length and can be one-time visits or regular meetings during a woman’s hospital stay.

“Meeting with a parent mentor allowed me to hear a ‘success story’ firsthand. When you have problems with your pregnancy, especially early on, you need hope to get you through it. Hearing about someone else's success gave me hope that I could get through months of bedrest too.
 
Dalia Stoddard, Parent
 
“During my two-month antepartum stay, I spoke with several moms who had been hospitalized during their pregnancies. It was very reassuring and helpful to hear from women who had similar experiences. I decided to become an antepartum mentor so that I could provide the same kind of support and encouragement to other women facing challenges during their pregnancies."
 
Nicole Kangas, Parent Mentor

Sequoia Special Care Nursery
A parent mentor visits with families each week in the Sequoia Special Care Nursery in Redwood City. The parent mentor provides support and information to interested families, particularly about the transition from hospital to home.
 
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and the Packard Intermediate Care Nursery
Parent mentors work weekly, visiting families in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and the Packard Intermediate Care Nursery, and speaking with parents by telephone.
 
A bilingual parent mentor is available for Spanish-speaking families. A discharge mentor is referred to families as they prepare to go home.
 

Parent Hours: Weekly Gatherings of NICU and IICN Parents

Parents with infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) or Packard Intermediate Care Nursery are invited to attend Parent Hours. Parent Hours are weekly gatherings of parents who wish to learn more about their child’s hospitalization.
 
Some of the topics addressed include:

Bringing your baby home Car seat safety Your baby’s nutrition Bonding with your baby in the hospital Reading your baby’s cues

Infant massage Navigating the NICU/IICN Knitting Scrapbooking

Parent Hours for the NICU and IICN are held every Wednesday. Please contact your social worker for specific times. An informal dinner is provide the second Wednesday of the month. 
 

NICU Resources

These resources were created by Packard Children’s Hospital families for your family. All documents below are in PDF format, unless otherwise noted below.

English	Spanish
Tips for Bringing Your Baby Home	Consejos para cuando lleve su bebé a casa
Washing Your Hands	Lavarse las manos
The Parent's Role at Medical Rounds	El papel de los padres en las rondas médicas
Navigating the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and Intermediate Intensive Care Nursery (IICN)	Guía para la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos Neonatales (NICU) y para la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos Intermedios (IICN)

• An Introduction to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Your Role As the Parent of a Hospitalized Baby. Windows / QuickTime