The purpose of this section is to provide you with information about caring for your baby while they are staying in Butterfly. We hope that we can support you to learn lots of useful skills that every parent needs to know but we also want to teach you special skills that you might need as a parent of a baby who has been in a NICU.

The education in this section is provided through a mix of text, pictures and videos to make it as easy for you to learn new things as possible. Your baby’s bedside nurse or our COCOON Care Coordinator can coach you using these resources as well as supporting you at the bedside to practice the skill(s) you have chosen to learn about at the time.

You do not need to do all of the modules as some of them are very specialised, such as tracheostomy cares, and most parents will not need to learn all of the specialised skills. 

If you are unsure about what or when you should consider learning a skill and whether or not your baby is ready to practice with you, please ask us for guidance.

The daily routine and care planning

We told you a bit about the daily routine in Butterfly in the Orientation section. We hope that once you and your baby have settled in, we will be able to support you to get into a routine that works for you and you can continue after you take your baby home. By that time, the goal will be to have your baby in 3 – 4 hourly cycles of: wake-up, feed, nappy change, interact/play, settle, sleep, and so on. By the time they are around 6 – 8 weeks of age, they might sleep for longer during the night, maybe even up to 6 hours at a time.

Butterfly babies often have routines that are different to the one described above as they are unwell and may also be premature. You can get to know, and guide, your baby’s routine by being with them as much as you can possibly manage and playing a really important role in planning their care.

“Day in the life”

As parents cannot stay overnight in Butterfly Ward, many choose to come in around 9am. You can call before you come, or write what you would like to do with your baby on your Communication board, so that our staff know to wait until you arrive to help you do your baby’s cares (nappy change, temperature, SpO2 probe change). Obviously, if your baby is due a feed or medicines or needs their nappy changed and you are not in yet, then our staff will take care of them.

Note: If you want to be present for the morning ward round in NICU, you will need to come in by 9am. HDU rounds normally start around 10am.

Once your baby has had a feed and their cares, it might be a nice opportunity for you to have a skin to skin care (SSC) cuddle with them before they are due for their next feed and cares. If they are not well enough for SSC, you can use positive touch (hand hugs) and read or sing to them so that they know you are there. If they are older and almost ready to go home, they might like to play or have some music therapy in between feeds and cares.

Don’t forget to look after yourself too. Take the opportunity to leave the ward if your baby is resting or occupied with clinical things and get some fresh air or something to eat. You can learn more about looking after yourself and connecting with other Butterfly families to share the highs and lows of a NICU stay, in the Caring for Yourself and COCOON PEEPS sections.

Your baby will have close nursing care 24 hours a day and our NICU doctors will see them at least once every day, although they can see them much more often, if needed. Doctors and therapists from Butterfly and other teams come and go during the day. Please feel free to ask everyone who comes to see you and your baby to tell you who they are and what their role is. Please read this to learn more about who you might meet.

Most parents who can, stay until evening time with their baby before heading home to get on with life outside of NICU. Parents who are staying in the hospital or nearby, may want to spend time with their baby through the night, particularly when the baby is learning to breastfeed. 

We understand if you cannot stay all day or even come every day so please rest assured that we will look after your baby to the best of our ability if you cannot be with them. Please remember, you can use COCOON BabyChat to connect with your baby if you cannot be with them.