Page 69 - What to Expect

Going home

Car seats

It is a legal requirement that all passengers travelling in a car be safely
belted in. This goes for babies too.

To ensure the safety of your baby when travelling by car it is important that
you securely fasten your baby in a standards approved car seat. A baby
cocoon in the back seat of the car is not a safe way for a baby to travel.

Baby car seats can be hired from the Plunket Society, and some baby
shops, like The Baby Factory, for reasonable rates. Friends may have a
car seat that you can borrow. If you plan to have more children it can be
cheaper to buy a car seat. If you are hiring a car seat from Plunket, they
need to be ordered when baby reaches 1600 grams and confirmed a week
before discharge.

When putting baby in a car seat his body needs to be kept straight (not
slumped over) so breathing is easy and he gets plenty of oxygen. The
closer your baby is to lying down, the better off he is.

When you attend the CPR, safe sleeping and car seat positioning class you
will be shown how to correctly position your baby in the car seat, as most
car seats are designed for the larger term baby.

Further pregnancies

Some families decide not to have any more babies after having a baby in
the Unit. If you decide to have another baby there is always the thought
that the current pregnancy may end with another baby in the Unit.

If you have a medical problem that dictates that you will have a child in
the Unit again, it is really important to visit the Unit again during your
pregnancy to re-familiarise yourself with the surroundings. You can forget
just how small prems are.

It is important to remind yourself that all children are individuals and
it may be different this time. Try to have no expectations from past
experiences placed upon the new pregnancy.

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