Introduction
I attended a class for pregnant women and their partners that covered issues about baby care. The responsibility of taking care of a baby, especially for new parents, can stir up a mixture of emotions as they grapple with ideas of how to best take care of their baby. This class was meant to equip the parents and soon to be parents with basic baby care tips. The class covered a wide range of issues from safety, choosing a pediatrician, comforting, feeding and cleaning the baby, mentioning a few. This article will cover several issues that took place in the class and their importance.
Benefits of the class to the expectant parents
The class was very beneficial to the attendees as it prepared them for the responsibility of taking care of their child after birth. The way parents take care of their children and the bond that comes with it determines a lot in the baby’s future (Sears & Sears, 1992), and as such, it is important to know how to properly develop the bond between the baby and the parents. Going by the numerous questions that were asked, it could be noted that the attendees had gotten lots of notions about baby care and needed professional opinions about these ideas, which they got.
They also learnt the right way of performing some activities, for instance how to correctly tell the baby’s temperature. Many parents always worry that they may not be able to tell when their child falls ill. The presentation covered this topic sufficiently and parents were encouraged to ask as many questions as they pleased. The class addressed covered some cultural practices pertaining to child care and explained to the parents the correct way of carrying out these practices.
Benefits of the class to a nurse
The presented information will affect the nursing practice as it showed the nurses how to respond to questions from expectant parents. During clinics, it is the nurses who mostly check the condition of children and are often asked questions by the parents on baby care. It is also their duty to advise parents during the clinics should they notice anything not going well with the baby. The class was exposed the nurses to some of the most commonly asked and showed them how to satisfactorily respond to the questions.
The presentation on how to properly tell a child’s temperature was especially important to nurses as they got to know the difference between the rectal, axillary and tympanic temperatures with the rectal temperature being regarded as the most accurate. In addition, the section about evaluation of children was also very beneficial as it will help nurses to perform quick diagnoses and know if the condition is serious or is a normal occurrence. All the information presented was important to nursing practice since, that not directly applied by the nurse becomes useful in advising expectant parents who may seek consultations from the nurses.
Conclusion
The class was important to the nurses but in particular, more beneficial to the expectant parents. Many care givers may not know how to correctly handle their babies. Babies are delicate and it is important to know how to correctly handle and take care of them. This knowledge does not come automatically and it is best to seek answers from professionals and classes like this. Nurses should advise their patients to attend these classes as they address a wide range of activities that may not be found anywhere else. They also provide a venue where one can interact with other parents and get to learn a thing or two.
Reference
Sears, W. and Sears, M. (1992). The baby book. New York: Little, Brown and company.