Skin to Skin Contact : Important and Practices

Abstract

The technique of skin-to-skin contact is important for a mother and newborn child because it continues their bond developed during pregnancy. It is one of the ten steps to successful breastfeeding operated by the United Nations. In addition, while a mother embraces her baby, their touching skin helps increase blood circulating to the peripheral blood vessels of the baby, which prevent neonatal hyperthermia and hypoglycemia in babies born from mothers with gestational diabetes mellitus. The skin-to-skin contact technique is more effective if it is done one hour after childbirth because the baby is alert and the mother is most sensitive to feelings during that period. So, nurses in the labor room are playing crucial roles in providing skin-to-skin contact safe for mothers and their baby. From the literature review, however, it is found that the nurses lack of explicit practical guideline, resulting in lack of confidence in nursing practice.  The purpose of this article is to present the importance of using the skin-to-skin contact technique and practical guidelines for nurses and staffs servicing in the delivery room to work with higher confidence.