Amelie special guest at birth unit opening
Minister arrives too
Kippen’s latest resident enjoyed the spotlight at just a few hours old.
Amelie, daughter of Megan Hawick and Gary Fraser, was one of the first babies to be born at a new facility at Forth Valley Royal Hospital last week.
And one of her first visitors was health secretary Jeane Freeman.
Ms Freeman was attending the opening of the alongside midwifery unit (AMU), which lets mums-to-be give birth in more homely surroundings.
The midwife-led facility is in the existing women and children’s unit but rooms have been refurbished to create a less clinical atmosphere.
New beds have been purchased to support delivery along with cube chairs, which convert to a double bed for women to sleep with their partner.
Ms Freeman met Megan and Gary with little Amelie, who weighed in at 10lb when she was born.
She also pupils from Larbert High School, who created a mural for the AMU corridor which was inspired by the hospital’s woodland surroundings.
Ms Freeman said: “We want to keep improving maternity and neonatal care in Scotland to ensure all mothers and babies are offered high-quality service with a family-centred, safe and compassionate approach.
“Our national maternity strategy recommends all NHS boards offer the full range of choice of place of birth and the AMU is a great example of this taking shape.”
The AMU has two rooms for water births and one other labour room. Specially commissioned artwork and light projection equipment have been installed to provide visual diversions and create a more calming environment.
NHS Forth Valley’s Gillian Morton said: “As well as the development of an AMU we will be introducing new working patterns for staff to ensure more women are cared for by a midwife they know during pregnancy, labour and after their baby has been born.
“In addition we are planning to develop new care arrangements for a specific group of babies who require increased nursing and monitoring to enable them to remain with their mother in the post-natal ward, rather than having to be transferred to the neonatal unit.”
Last year just over 3100 babies were born at Forth Valley Royal Hospital.