A beautiful baby has just been born! She comes into the world crying. The mother gave birth on her hands and knees, so the baby is placed between her legs on the bed, and the parents can admire her right away. They dry her off and then snuggle her close to them.
What do we do? Ideally, absolutely NOTHING! At least not in terms of direct actions. We observe…
Is the baby crying or breathing?
What color is the baby?
Is the baby moving around well?
Can we all answer “Yes” to this? If so, we won’t do anything at all except keep checking in on how the mother, partner, and child are doing. The most beautiful sight in the world….
The APGAR score So this is how we do it. We observe color, breathing, heart rate, reflexes, and muscle tone after 1.5 and 10 minutes. You can earn 2 points for each item, for a maximum total of 10!
If there are areas that could be improved, we’ll take action. For example, drying the baby off thoroughly. This stimulates the baby to keep crying for a while. If this doesn’t work, further measures may sometimes be necessary, such as administering oxygen. We always have the necessary equipment on hand for this, both at home and at the hospital.
After the "golden hour," during which the baby and parents can get to know each other in peace and quiet without any interruptions, we can continue with the baby check. During this visit, we measure the baby’s weight and length. We also perform reflex tests and check the palate and the cranial sutures. We check for any other physical abnormalities that we may not have noticed before. Once this is done, we’ll ask if you’d like to give your baby vitamin K. This helps with blood clotting. If so, we’ll give 3 drops, which is enough for the first week.
Once this is done, the baby can be held skin-to-skin with the mother or partner, or they can be dressed! And then… lots and lots of cuddles!
