Essential Newborn Care Protocol

It takes time to download but everything one must know about essential newborn protocol care protocol/program (ENP) can be found here.

The Four Core Steps of Essential Newborn Care include:
* Immediate and thorough drying
* Early skin-to-skin contact
* Properly timed cord clamping
* Non-separation of the newborn and mother for early initiation of breastfeeding

Note to moms... drying a baby is essential since they easily get cold and cold is the enemy of newborns. Per my LATCH counselor friend (who is also a pedia), babies who get cold may have breathing problems. It is, however, not the same as wiping off the vernix (the waxy substance covering the baby which is a natural protection from infections). This is why part of the protocol is the delayed bathing of the baby (up to six hours).

The same procedure can be done for STABLE premature babies but for both unstable term and premature babies, resuscitation or other initial intervention is of course prioritized.

The ultimate goal of ENP is non-separation with their mothers, not just for breastfeeding but also for the colonization with the mother's bacteria (which the mother can provide protection from) and skin-to-skin contact (warming).

And yes, even moms who just had a CS operation can enjoy the breast crawl. In fact, it becomes all the more essential as the baby missed the good bacteria it usually gets from normal deliveries that is very essential in jumpstarting a baby's immune system.

And this is the beautiful Unang Yakap video again:



And this is the official World Health Organization flyer on ENP.

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My nurse friend in the US shared that "mothers are best for their babies" is the cornerstone of what is referred in the US as NIDCAP (Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program) which I believe is the counterpart of our ENP.

It is really sad that a mother's natural capacities to carry, deliver, nourish and care for a child has been undermined by the modern way of life. Now, groups like ours even have to convince and empower women that the best they can give their children are nowhere outside them... that they are the experts and the authorities on their child.