The Little Moments platform began under the name “Project Lydia” and was inspired by a mother called Clare. In 2013, Clare had her baby girl in Liverpool Women’s Hospital. Unfortunately, her baby became unwell and had to be transferred 5 miles away to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital for specialist care. The stress of separation from her baby caused Clare a great amount of upset, and she has been campaigning for solutions to this problem ever since so that other mothers do not have to face the same emotional and psychological toll.
During a ward meeting of mothers and hospital staff, Clare asked “Why can’t I see my baby? Can technology solve this?”
This is not a small problem — over 90,000 babies are admitted to neonatal care every year because they have been born prematurely, or full term but sick. 5 miles may not seem like a long distance, but mothers and newborn babies are meant to be together. Premature babies can be in hospital for months and some families may have to travel hundreds of miles to their nearest specialist neonatal unit which can mean significant financial costs, as well as a lot of emotional strain.
Research has also suggested that parents of premature babies are twice as likely to suffer from postnatal depression as parents of full term healthy babies so the effects of separation can be detrimental.
If mummy and baby can be connected, the overall outcomes are better. We created Little Moments to solve this problem, find out how it works below.
Are you a parent of a preemie? We’d love to listen to your stories and learn more about your experiences. We have a growing network of parents, alongside partners in the NHS and leading universities. Our mission is to help combat postnatal depression in parents of preemies and connect families with their newborns. If you’d like to share your preemie experience, or for more information, please get in touch via kate@redninja.co.uk
