LAHORE: Ensuring care of a newborn baby has become even more important in the winter season as a little carelessness can lead to serious damage, the child can get sick, even the cold can prove fatal.
These views were expressed by General Cadre Doctors Association President and public Health consultant Dr Masood Akhtar sheikh while addressing the workshop titled ”Care of Newborn in Winter Season”, at a local hospital.
Dr Sheikh said that in a developing country like Pakistan, most deliveries are still done at home or at small clinics, usually without obstetricians or gynecologists, rather than in public hospitals and maternity centers, and deliveries are performed by midwives or LHVs. “There are a few small ways to maintain the health of the newborn and the mother. For the delivery process, it is important that the room where the delivery is completed should be kept clean, the room should be free of dust and its floors and walls should be thoroughly cleaned with an antiseptic,” he said, adding, “Proper arrangements for heating the room in winter should be started a few hours before labor, if an electric heater is used, the doors can be kept closed, but when using a gas heater or using coal, it is necessary to have some arrangement of air circulation to prevent dangerous and toxic gases from entering the room.”
He added, “Keeping the room temperature right before the baby is born is very important because the child is most vulnerable to cold in the winter season. A special disease called Hypothermia, the body temperature of the baby becomes very low and the internal temperature of the body drops so much that the death of the newborn baby can occur. The best way to prevent this disease is to warm the room where the newborn baby is kept and start heating the room a few hours before the baby is born and transferred to that room.”
He was of the view that no cold air should directly enter the newborn baby’s room, nor should any room window be open, otherwise the outside cold will quickly enter and worsen the temperature. Don’t take the baby out of the room in today’s weather and many times people take the baby out of the room just to sunbathe,” he reiterated.
Public Health Consultant Dr Fatima Majeed said “If you use a gas or electric heater while warming the baby, it is likely to cause dryness in the room. To remove it, pour water in an open-mouthed container and place it near the heater so that it evaporates and the atmosphere of the room and its air does not dry out, but a certain proportion of moisture spreads. If only the dry heater is left running, the baby’s airways are likely to dry out, which can lead to difficulty breathing and even coughing,” she explained.
Dr Asad Abbas Shah said babies in villages where people cannot afford pampers should use cotton diapers and change them immediately when wet. Whenever changing the baby’s vest and clothes, the room temperature should be suitable and any new clothes you put on should be properly warmed first with an iron or a heater so that the baby is not immediately uncomfortable,” he observed.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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