The babies in the Golisano Children’s Hospital’s Level 111 Neonatal ICU (NICU) are babies who are born before 32 weeks’ gestation, who weigh less than 3.3 pounds at birth, or they have critical medical or surgical conditions regardless of whether they are pre or full term. These babies come from all areas within Southwest Florida, as Golisano is the only Level 111 NICU between Miami and Tampa.
As parents we hope and expect our birth experience to have a joyous ending. But, when your baby gets transferred to a NICU, you are scared, sad, and overwhelmed. You’ve lost control as you watch helplessly as your newborn is surrounded by machines and medical procedures in a very unfamiliar environment. You feel a sense of loss from not being able to hold your baby. And that’s where the work of our Sew & Sews is meant to help, in small but meaningful ways, by providing a sense of connection for the parent who cannot always be together with their baby.
The Sew & Sews make identical flannel hearts – one worn by the parent and the other the baby. A number of moms have recounted that they can smell their baby on the heart and this helps them pump milk for the baby. This is important because pumping can be difficult for a mother who cannot yet hold her child.
Since some babies, depending on their health condition, spend several months in the NICU, they may spend a number of holidays there. The babies in Golisano’s NICU recently all received a Valentine’s Day hat made by our Yarn Arts group, making the day a little more cheerful. Our Sew & Sews Yarn Arts group also makes hats for the babies for Easter, the 4th of July, Halloween and Christmas, and they are eagerly awaited by families whose baby has been in the NICU for a significant amount of time.
When the baby is ready to go home, our Sew & Sews Yarn Arts group is ready with an individualized pink or blue “graduation cap” and a handknit or crocheted blanket for him or her. As they begin this transition to home, the baby and parents are honored with “Pomp and Circumstance” broadcast throughout the NICU. The family and the staff who have cared for them gather to celebrate their achievement, while the baby blanket enfolds the baby with love and comfort.
“Kindness is helping the world, one person at a time”
