Nursing Care of Newborn During Postpartumn Period

Nursing Care of Newborn During Postpartumn Period

Who is Newborn Baby or Neonate?

A newborn infant, or neonate, is a child under 28 days of age. During these first 28 days of life, the child is at highest risk of dying. It is thus crucial that appropriate feeding and care are provided during this period, both to improve the child’s chances of survival and to lay the foundations for a healthy life.

First four weeks of life after birth are described as newborn period. Proper care of the newborn babies forms the foundation for the subsequent life not only in terms of longevity or survival but also in terms of qualitative outcome without any mental and physical disabilities.

Nursing Care of Newborn During Postpartumn Period:

Necessary cares required of newborn during postpartum period are-

1. During the initial feeding, a term newborn could be fed immediately after birth while a formula-fed one should be fed at 2 to 4 hours of age.
2. Bathing is done an hour after birth to gently wash away the vernix caseosa, and this is done daily.
3. Areas such as the newborn’s face, skin folds, and diaper area are the areas that need washing regularly.
4. The nurse must supervise the bathing together with the parents.

You can read: Nursing Care of Newborn Baby at Birth

1. The bath water must be pleasantly warm as well as the room to prevent chilling.
2. Bathing should be before feeding and not after it to prevent aspiration and vomiting.
3. Equipment needed during bathing are a basin of water, washcloth, soap, towel, diaper, a clean shirt, and comb.
4. Start bathing the infant from the cleanest area (the eyes) towards the dirtiest area (the diaper area), and soap is never used for the baby’s face, only for the body.
5. Do not soak the cord when you wash the skin around it.
6. Instruct the parents that the sleeping position of the infant must be flat on the back to prevent SIDS, but never place a pacifier on the infant during sleep. During diaper change, the area must be washed and dried well to prevent diaper rash.
7. Petroleum jelly or a mild ointment is applied on the buttocks to avoid accumulation of ammonia and remove meconium.
8. Vaccination for Hepatitis B and Vitamin K administration is also essential in the postpartum period.

Basic Needs of Newborn Baby:

Four basic needs of all newborns at the time of birth & for the first few weeks of life are:

• To be kept warm,
• To breathe normally,
• To be protected (prevent infection),
• To be breastfed.

It is very important to understand the needs of the baby and meet all those needs. Because, unmet needs will lead to health problems very quickly.

More questions related to this article:

1. What is newborn baby?
2. Define newborn.
3. Who is a neonate?
4. Write down the nursing care of newborn during postpartum period.
5. What cares are required of newborn during postpartum period.
6. What are the basic needs of a newborn baby?
7. List the basic needs of all newborn just after birth.
8. What are the basic needs of a newborn?