Pictured Above: The Maternity Wing at St Peter’s Hospital was lit up in blue and pink from 9th-15th October 2020 to recognise Baby Loss Awareness Week, remembering those babies’ who have sadly died.
Baby Loss Awareness Week is an opportunity to support bereaved families and commemorate babies' lives.
Any baby loss is tragic and causes deep distress and pain for the parents and their family. If a baby dies before 24 completed weeks of pregnancy, it is known as a miscarriage. Miscarriages are more common than most people think and each pregnancy carries a 1:4 chance of miscarriage. A stillbirth is when a baby is born dead after 24 weeks of pregnancy; this happens in around 1:225 births in England.
St Peter's Hospital have an Early Pregnancy Unit to help parents with losses up to the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
The labour ward has a dedicated bereavement suite known as the Daffodil Room where parents deliver their baby who has died from 12 weeks. This room is furthest away from the main labour ward in order to give as much privacy as possible for the parents. It is a homely room with a sofa bed for parents, toiletries and a fridge and refreshments are provided.
The NICU is a level three unit which means that they can care for the smallest and sickest babies. Often babies are transferred to St Peter's in the neonatal ambulance from all over the UK for the specialised care they require.
Zara Chamberlain, Bereavement Midwife at St Peter’s hospital says; ‘Together we work as a team and always strive for change and improvements in care and support to give the best possible care at the most devastating time. Parents are able to access bereavement counselling and receive birth support in future pregnancies following a pregnancy loss.’Anyone who may been affected by pregnancy loss or who may like further information can contact: