Support group gets set up to help parents leaving Hull neonatal unit
“NeoFriends” has been set up by Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
Last updated 6th Mar 2023
A new set of groups for babies who’ve been discharged from special care wards in Hull hospitals are changing the way mum's feel about attending groups.
It’s after some felt uneasy attending traditional mum and baby groups.
“NeoFriends” has been set up by Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust – Sarah Sharp set up the groups with Hannah Hoff from the Special Care Baby Unit after speaking to parents and carers as part of her work with the NICU outreach team.
Sarah said:
“A similar theme kept cropping up when we were visitingpeople in their home,” said Sarah. “They got support from the unit and theoutreach team but, after that, they felt a bit on their own.
“They said they weren’t comfortable with attendingtraditional baby groups because they’d had such a different experience to thosefamilies.
“We thought creating these special groups would help them make friends and get support from others who understood what they had gone through in those early weeks and months of their babies’ lives.”
Beverley Children’s Centre hosts its NeoFriends session on the third Thursday in the month and there’s a session at the Haven, the new spiritual and pastoral centre on the first floor of the new entrance of Hull Royal Infirmary, on the fourth Thursday in the month.
Email sarah.sharp20@nhs.netif you’d like to find out more.