The Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) at Conquest Hospital has become the first Level 1 unit in the country to achieve Gold Accreditation in The Bliss Baby Charter.
Level 1 units look after babies who do not need intensive care but might need, for example, monitoring of their breathing or heart rate, or given more oxygen. The Bliss Baby Charter has provided a practical framework for the unit to self-assess the quality of family-centred care they deliver. It has also enabled the unit to audit their practices and develop meaningful plans to achieve changes that benefit babies and their families.
The SCBU team with Holly Sullivan, Bliss Baby Charter Programme Lead and Neil James, Bliss Trustee.
Wendy Thompsett, Joint Ward Matron, said: “This is a fantastic achievement for the team and for our parents. This is an especially significant award and we achieved this as a team with all staff working together to support the families of babies on the unit. This award gives us a huge boost, especially after the difficulties of the last two years.
“We have always believed in the principle of being family friendly and it is great that this has been recognised formally. We have worked really hard over many years to gain this award. It will give us added impetus as we work with the Network to extend even further towards Family Integrated Care.”
The award was presented to the unit by Holly Sullivan, Bliss Baby Charter Programme Lead and Neil James, Bliss Trustee.
The Bliss Baby Charter is now the UK standard for developing, measuring and improving family-centred care, and achieving Bliss Baby Charter accreditation is an esteemed marker of quality. 93% of neonatal units are taking part in the Bliss Baby Charter and this gives Bliss a unique view of neonatal practice across the UK. By sharing this best practice in the neonatal community they hope to inspire even more changes and see more babies benefiting from their parents playing an active role in their neonatal care.