BLISS – the premature baby charity

BLISS is dedicated to ensuring that more babies survive, have the best possible quality of life and that their parents and families get the support they need.

One in eight babies born in the UK spends at least a few days in a neonatal unit. The largest number of babies in neonatal care are there because they were born weeks or months before their due date.

If a baby is born ‘term’, this means the baby is born after 37 completed weeks of gestation. Babies born before 37 weeks are premature.

BLISS offers support and information to parents of babies who need to spend time in neonatal care because they are born prematurely or sick.

About premature birth

Babies can be born prematurely for many different reasons such as: pregnancies with twins, triplets or more babies, stressful events including long distance air travel, the death of someone very close to you. There is no evidence that normal day-to-day stresses of living can bring on premature labour.

About a third of premature births happen for no clear reason. It may be that an infection in the womb triggered the delivery. While there are many different reasons why a baby may be born early, there is still a lot that is not known about the causes of prematurity.

Medical advances mean that survival rates of premature babies, especially babies born before 28 weeks into the pregnancy, have increased hugely. For more information on this, see the BLISS website facts and figures page.

BLISS supports premature and sick babies by -

• supporting parents and families through a wide range of support and information services including a free phone helpline, free information leaflets and local information support days and groups run by families who have had a baby in neonatal care. Interactive parent message board: visit www.bliss.org.uk.
• campaigning for improvements in neonatal care - working closely with Government and other key policymaking bodies
• promoting new developments and innovations in care by supporting health professional development, medical innovation as well as helping the spread of good practice throughout the neonatal sector.

BLISS freephone parent support helpline for information and support:
0500 618140

Open Monday to Friday 10am – 5pm

BLISS – the premature baby charity
2nd Floor, 9 Holyrood Street, London SE1 2EL
t 020 7378 1122 f 020 7403 0673
www.bliss.org.uk

Teddy & Me provide beautiful clothing for premature and tiny babies.

Visit www.teddyandme.co.uk

Pregnancy for parents is supposed to be a time of joy. Nine months of watching a tummy grow then the end result a perfectly healthy baby. Sadly to say, in the UK today about 100 babies are born prematurely each day.

My wife had to have our baby delivered by caesarean section at only 28 weeks pregnant. The baby, Kirsty, was born at only 1½ pounds and was given only a 10% chance of survival. Needless to say the months since her birth have been both traumatic and rewarding.

Due to the lack of information available in the UK we have set up a web site about Kirsty, her start in life in a special baby care unit and her life at home on oxygen.

Seeing all the cables and tubes can be a nightmare for both parents and relatives alike. The web site was developed to give parents and relatives an insight into 'premi' times. We hope that it also gives them hope, confidence and re-assurance that premature babies are little miracles, and are hardier than what most people think!

Best wishes,

John Stanton.

www.pre-maturebaby.com

www.premature-babies.co.uk - this excellent site has been created by Kerri Thomas, the mother of a premature baby. It aims to provide useful information for parents, expectant parents, friends and relatives of premature babies, particularly in the UK. Through the site Kerri recounts her time in hospital and her experiences to date. The site also includes factual information, summarised from numerous books, contact addresses for support organisations and much, much more.

http://groups.msn.com/ElliesSpecialCareBabyProject/ - Ellen Standley has set up a community on MSN with details of her project to knit blankets and clothes for the Special Care Baby Unit at the Norfolk & Norwich Hospital. Please take a look at her site if you'd like to know more or if you think you could help by donating any spare wool.

http:www.raypofhope.co.uk - Ray of Hope Babywear knit, crochet, cross-stitch, quilt, and/or sew for their local Maternity and Neonatal Unit at Leighton Hospital Crewe, Cheshire. All the items are given freely to the Hospital so if you feel you can help in anyway, patterns, items, wool then please contact Christine through their web site above.

The site also has a brilliant collection of patterns for tiny baby clothes, both hand and machine knitting.

www.earlybaby.co.uk offers a wide-range of good quality, affordable baby clothes and accessories specially created for premature and low birthweight babies. The site also provides information and resources on how to care for a premature baby.

www.babies-born.co.uk offers an excellent range of premature and low birth weight baby clothes.

www.teeny-tinies.com are a new company dedicated to supplying patterns and ready-to-assemble clothing for precious, premature babies.

The site is run by a mum who, after having had two premature babies, knows how difficult it can be to find tiny clothes for tiny babies, both as a mum keen to clothe her new baby or as a friend or relative wishing to buy a gift.

They supply patterns with a choice of styles (romper, dresses, vest, hat) in sizes 2lb-5lb plus fabric if required. Alternatively, you can buy kits in a range of styles and sizes that contain pre-cut pieces of fabric, bias trim and velcro fastenings with full instructions for assembly.