The South West Cuddle Bundle Professionals Page

The SW Cuddle Bundle is a collaboration of quality improvement projects from around the region. Originating with the Cuddle Bundle project from Plymouth NICU, where the team observed a need to support families with the frequency and duration of skin-to-skin kangaroo cuddles for their babies. They implemented staff education and strategies to improve their practice.

Plymouth’s work has been combined with other QI projects from around the South West region to develop a bundle of care aimed at increasing closeness and connection for every baby and family from birth, throughout their neonatal journey and at home. The bundle focuses on the following 5 elements:

  1. Delivery room cuddles

  2. Early and frequent skin to skin cuddles

  3. Implementation of Kangaroo Care Cuddle Wraps©

  4. Cuddles and parental involvement during painful procedures

  5. Continuing Kangaroo care at home

The bundle also includes the consideration for kangaroo care during transport, drawing on the KaKoon project within the SONAR transport service and cuddles during therapeutic hypothermia treatment with support from the CoolCuddle study.

Cuddle Bundle Webinar Series

  • The SW Cuddle Bundle Share and Learn Webinars are a series of bite-size, educational, lunchtime webinars delivered by healthcare professionals for healthcare professionals. Each presentation will be followed by a showcase of a local project or initiative and there will be time for discussion and questions.

    All South West Medical, Nursing and Allied Health Professionals who work within a Neonatal or Transitional Care setting are invited to register.

    **These Webinars are not open to delegates outside of the South West Neonatal Network

    1. Skin-to-skin is life: What is 'Nurturescience'?

    2. Family perceptions and connection

    3. Focus on delivery room cuddles

    4. NICU Focus: Supporting Skin to Skin contact for <27wks gestation and the sick infant

    5. Skin-to-skin and pain management

    6. Sensory experience of skin-to-skin

    7. Skin-to-skin supports lactation & feeding

    8. The impact of skin-to-skin on long term outcomes

    9. Series close - QI Showcase

  • 'Webinar 5: 'Skin-to-Skin Supports Lactation and Feeding'

    An in-depth look into the benefits of breast milk and how early, frequent and prolonged skin-to-skin contact improves breast milk yield and promotes early and sustained breastfeeding.

    We will also explore healthy infant microbiome development and the 9 fundamental stages of skin-to-skin. As well as how regular and prolonged skin-to-skin promotes early communication and strengthens parent-infant relationships.

    Click the 'REGISTER HERE' button to sign up

Click here to register for the next SW Cuddle Bundle Webinar:

Click each image to have a closer look

Link here to access the recordings of previous episodes in the Cuddle Bundle webinar series through the SW Moodle Learning Platform:

SW Cuddle Bundle Staff Resources

You will find the SW Cuddle Bundle educational and launch resources to guide and support you to improve skin to skin cuddles and parent-infant closeness on your units’ within our SW Neonatal Network FutureNHS workspace.