Now, iPads to help mums bond with newborns in hospitals

A new iPad program is enabling mothers to bond with their babies soon after delivery – even when they are hospitalized on different floors.

Moms who are not ambulatory after delivery, perhaps because of a cesarean section or other complications, are able to see their newborns in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit due to the new iPad initiative in the Maxine Dunitz Children’s Health Center at Cedars-Sinai.

The program, called BabyTime, allows moms to visit with their infants and the medical team over a secured Internet connection.

“BabyTime will help bridge communication with the family and the baby’s medical team and is an excellent use of technology to help new mothers bond with their babies, even when they cannot be physically at their babies’ bedside,” Charles F. Simmons Jr., MD, chair of the Cedars-Sinai Department of Pediatrics and Ruth and Harry Roman Chair in Neonatology, said.

“When doctors and nurses are treating a newborn in the NICU, mom can be right there asking questions and getting updates, even if she’s on a different floor,” he said.

Simmons estimates that 20 to 30 percent of mothers who undergo C-sections do not feel well enough to travel from their bed in the Labor and Delivery unit to the NICU for the first 24 to 48 hours.

As soon as the baby is admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, an iPad is set up next to the infant’s incubator. A second iPad is delivered to the new mother, who can log onto BabyTime twice a day.

“The BabyTime program will reduce fear and stress in the new moms as they are able to see their babies and also communicate with the doctors and nurses,” Selma Braziel, nurse manager for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, said.