Be Sweet to Babies

06/11/2020

Great interview with Miracle Babies Foundation https://healthsciences.unimelb.edu.au/news-and-events/interview-with-miracle-babies-melinda-cruz-a-parents-perspective-on-neonatal-research about reducing pain in sick babies in the NICU

Interview with Miracle Babies' Melinda Cruz: A Parent's Perspective on Neonatal Research

16/07/2020

Very cool 'Facebook' study by Dr Ana Claudia Vieira conducted during her Post-doc with me in the University of Ottawa, Canada.
Dr Viera showed that sharing the Portuguese Be Sweet to Babies video on Facebook, after one year, resulted in 70,753 page views, 2199 accesses & the brief survey also accessed from the Page, was completed by 930. This is a 42% response rate based on page accesses. So exciting to see this work published. The paper is published as Full Text ahead of Print - and is part of the Solutions for Pain in Kids (SKiP) Special Knowledge Mobilization issue in the Journal Paediatric and Neonatal Pain. The whole issue will be available soon.

The Be Sweet to Babies video demonstrates the analgesic effects of breastfeeding, skin‐to‐skin care, and sweet‐tasting solutions as interventions to reduce pain during blood sampling in newborns. Alt...

02/07/2020

Only 3 weeks to go until my PhD at University of Melbourne studentship deadline. Interested in pursuing a PhD in the area of neonatal/infant pain management, parent involvement in pain care with me? Interested in a funded studentship at the Department of Nursing, University of Melbourne? See details in this link

PhD Studentship: Be Sweet to Babies

17/06/2020

A reminder that in our Covid-19 times, keeping mothers and babies together is vital! They should not be separated unless either party is critically ill and requiring critical care. See the blog from John Hopkins Nursing group -

While the pandemic has disrupted many hospital routines, keeping mothers and babies together and supporting breastfeeding must remain top priorities, regardless of COVID-19 status.

13/06/2020

Still open...Interested in pursuing a PhD in the area of neonatal/infant pain management, parent involvement in pain care with me? Interested in a funded studentship at the Department of Nursing, University of Melbourne? See details in this link

PhD Studentship: Be Sweet to Babies

04/05/2020

Thanks to my postdoc Dr Ana Claudia Vieira, who worked with me at The School of Nursing, University of Ottawa, her Facebook study of our Portuguese Be Sweet to Babies video is now published https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/pne2.12022

This unique study shows that Facebook was an effective platform for sharing our video and also for collecting data. This is important for our work, in sharing information with parents, about best ways to help reduce pain during commonly performed painful procedures in babies.

01/05/2020

My brief video about Being Sweet to Babies. Thanks Dr Ana Vieira for requesting me to do this!!!

01/05/2020

Very brief reminder to Be Sweet to Babies - breastfeed or hold skin-skin during painful procedures. Don't separate Mums from newborns.

26/04/2020

It's European Immunization Week. Don't forget to reduce babies' pain by supporting Mums to breastfeed during needles. Our Be Sweet to Babies videos show how https://youtube.com/watch?v=FrKmAth4ZGc&feature=youtu.be https://youtu.be/55tejVjzzwE

Vaccination Time: How to reduce crying and pain during babies' immunizations! Be Sweet to Babies Research shows - for infants less than 12 months of age: 1. ...

16/04/2020

As per my usual mantra...don't forget the babies!! We are all so affected by the global COVID-19 virus, and the accompanying public health recommendations. However babies are still being born, babies and babies still get sick and babies still need their vaccination, Reducing pain during needles, which occur for healthy babies and sick babies is necessary now as much as ever. Simple ways we can reduce pain in babies are: breastfeeding if possible and culturally acceptable; holding babies skin-skin, against mothers'/fathers' or other family members/friends' bare chest. And, if these strategies are not possible, very small amounts...just a drop...of sugar water, made at home with boiling water and a teaspoon of sugar, or provided by the hospital/vaccination clinic. So, Be Sweet to Babies, and use known, research based ways to reduce pain. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrKmAth4ZGc&feature=youtu.be

13/04/2020

Thought it was time to send photos of some of our lovely gum trees and birds from our Melbourne, Australia street. Hope you like them.