Maternity nurses at MaineGeneral Medical Center have been visiting new mothers
and their babies for years, but now they get to do it in style.
The hospital recently rolled out two new "Baby Bugs," lime green Volkswagon Beetles, that the nurses will use to visit new families who delivered at either the hospital's Augusta or Waterville campus.
The vehicles were purchased with funds donated by employees as part of the health care system's annual fund-raising campaign which raised $284,000 for MaineGeneral and the United Ways of Kennebec Valley and Mid-Maine. Of the total, employees donated more than $45,000 for the special vehicles.
"Our OB nurses came up with the idea of the 'baby bugs' as a way to raise awareness in our communities about the free follow-up home visits our staff nurses make to each new mom and baby born at MaineGeneral," explained Annette Bowman, director of Maternal Child Health Services in Waterville. "We wanted it to be fun and eye-catching."
Jennifer Riggs, director of Maternal Child Services in Augusta said "Our nurses have been doing the follow-up visits for years using their own vehicles. We saw this as a great way to increase our visibility within the Kennebec Valley region."
Thanking her staff nurses who have visited new moms and babies as far south as York and as far north as the County, Riggs pointed out that "the program was rolled out in 1994 when the length of stay for new moms and babies was reduced and we weren't able to give patients what they needed during their hospital stay. We were the first hospital in the area to do it. A lot of others followed suit but many of those programs have been since cut. We have been able to sustain it because it's the best thing for our patients," she added.
The nurses examine both newborns and mothers, check temperatures and blood pressure, check the baby's weight and answer questions about care. A 24-hour "warm line" staffed by MaineGeneral nurses is also available to answer questions and respond to concerns about newborn care.
According to Bowman and Riggs, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends promoting successful breastfeeding, early detection of jaundice in newborns and timely after-discharge care. "The home visits ensure that we follow these guidelines in a way that makes it easier and less disruptive for families adapting to new family responsibilities. One way we measure its success is by noting the significant decrease in newborn hospital readmissions since the program was implemented," they said.