Hola a tod@s, my dear Friends.

On June of 2013 the next document was published by Spanish Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality:


 

It is the agreement of the Interterritorial Council to establish quality criteria applicable to Paediatric and Newborn Intensive Care Units (PICU and NICU) and of the National Health System, enabling to homogenize the attention, schedules visits and protocols.

It is a very short document, which ends with a list of measures to improve the quality and warmth of the attention of children under 18 years hospitalized in Spain, and I wanted you to had the document available. 

1. Establish an institutional policy that ensures that children admitted in newborn and paediatric ICUs will be accompanied by their mother, father or family, recognizing the essential role for the income of the minor.

2. Promote the mother/father who wish can stay with the child 24 hours a day, and accompanying during painful and stressful medical tests in order to reduce their level of anxiety, without interfering in professional work.

3. In the newborn, encourage contact skin to skin and interaction with their mothers and fathers the maximum time possible, since benefits are shown for both.

4. Promote the creation of banks of breast milk in major hospitals newborn services.

5. Help the training and participation of the family in care and decision-making and inform them of their rights and of their children.

6. Promote awareness-raising, training and updating knowledge on breastfeeding and the importance of the role of the parent in the health care professional team.

7. Ensure the continuity of care during pregnancy, childbirth and puerperium.

8. Provide information and support to mothers and fathers who have their children admitted in the Hospital.

9. Develop policies and hospital practices that favour the initiative of hospitals and Newborn friends units of mother and child in accordance with UNICEF and WHO, as the Initiative for the humanization of assistance at birth and breastfeeding.

10. Include these measures in the protocols of the cited PICU and NICU of the whole of the Spanish Health System hospitals, ensuring its compliance.

 

I am sorry because the full document it´s only available in Spanish. As you can see, there is a long way to do.

What about adults? From The IC-HU Project, we are creating the International Initiative for the Humanization of Assistance in Intensive Care. All together, listening to all voices

Happy Thursday,
Gabi