Well-baby clinic opens in hospital
Hadera’s Hillel Yaffe is country’s first to provide tipat halav • The mothers are very enthusiastic about it, chief nurse says
Hillel Yaffe Medical Center in Hadera has become the first Israeli hospital to open a free well-baby (tipat halav) clinic where mothers can immediately learn about the nutritional, developmental and other needs of their infants.
MK Yaakov Litzman, who attended the ceremony, said, “It was important for me to come and I would be happy to see this initiative in other hospitals.”
Former health minister MK Ya’acov Litzman, attended the ceremony on Monday and said, “Those who have given birth know that it is not easy to schedule an appointment for tipat halav and the lines are long, so the initial meeting in the maternity ward is important.”
He added that he hoped that other hospitals would follow this initiative.
Hundreds of well-baby stations exist around the country, in the community and are run by the government, health funds and municipalities.
They offer health promotion and prevention for women before delivery, after birth for babies and children (up to age six) and for their families.
The first visit after delivery is usually when the baby is four years old.
“We give the mother the tools for the first few days after birth, as well as basic information on topics such as immunization schedules, development tests, breastfeeding information and more,” said Edna Rosenfeld, a nurse in the Hadera district health office who initiated the service in the hospital.
Orna Grinberg, chief maternity ward nurse said that the answers to surveys that were conducted to see if a tipat halav branch in the hospital is something that mothers would like, “were very enthusiastic.”
“There was hardly a new mother who did not go and visit the facility today [Monday].”