England’s first specialised mental health neonatal peer support for families has been commissioned by our Trust.
Parents dealing with the shock and stress of a preterm or a seriously ill baby are now being offered expert mental health support while their baby is being cared for.
Leo’s Neonatal, an award-winning charity which provides specialised support for families, has launched the service at North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust (NTHFT).
Commissioned by Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (TEWV), Leo’s new project will provide dedicated support to families whose babies require neonatal care.
“This is England’s first specialised neonatal peer support scheme for families, and we are delighted to be part of such an important project,” said Brent Kilmurray, TEWV chief executive.
The new service will offer an array of bespoke care to families, including dedicated peer support, counselling therapies, pregnancy relaxation and bespoke pregnancy journals.
Support is also available for expectant families who have experienced a previous neonatal stay or loss.
Nicola Threadgold, lead midwife sonographer, said: “The aim of this partnership is to help reduce anxiety and worry for families.
“Having a seriously ill baby is an incredibly worrying time for a parent. Providing a targeted support service to compliment the work of our specialist preterm birth and fetal medicine clinics can only help parents through this most difficult of times.”
Leo’s Neonatal charity was founded by Lottie King, the mother of twin boys, who were cared for by the team on the NTHFT’s special care baby unit.
One of the boys, Leo, sadly died at just four hours old after a 25-week gestation, prompting Lottie to set up the charity to help support other parents.
Leo’s twin brother Oska was born four days later and spent more than 100 days on the special care baby unit at the University Hospital of North Tees in 2015, before going home to be with his family, including elder brother Dax.
Lottie, from Yarm, said: “I set up Leo’s charity after realising the lack of mental health support for parents like me.
“We now help families across the region with specialised neonatal peer support and an array of targeted neonatal counselling support.
“We also run lots of sessions which families can attend such as swimming, messy play, yoga, massage, and sensory play groups.”
- Leo’s Neonatal was awarded a Prime Minister’s Points of Light Award for its work in providing care and support for neonatal families during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the prime minister commending the charity: “The work that you do helps so many and is a wonderful tribute to Leo.”
