Care of the newborn after birth

Breast milk is the best possible nutrition for your baby. Close contact with your baby – skin-to-skin bonding – not just in the first few hours of life, is the first step towards successful breastfeeding.

Following an uncomplicated birth and provided the baby is adapting well post-delivery, the baby is immediately placed on the mother’s chest or stomach for immediate bonding, whilst the umbilical cord remains intact. During skin-to-skin contact, the baby is gently dried and covered with a warm blanket.  Basic checks to assess physiological functions can be carried out whilst the baby is on the mother’s body. The initial care routine—including temperature measurement, weighing, fitting of identification bracelets and putting on a disposable nappy—can be postponed for up to two hours after birth, at the parents’ request. We encourage early breastfeeding in the delivery room. We follow the same procedure for caesarean section births; if the baby is adapting well, parents may bond with the baby throughout the operation; if the mother feels unwell, the father may bond with the baby.