The Sunbeam Suite @ Airedale General Hospital...
The Sunbeam Suite is a dedicated Maternity Bereavement Suite at Airedale NHS Foundation Trust Hospital, in West Yorkshire.
The suite provides a calm, safe space, adjacent to Labour Ward, for parents who have lost a child during pregnancy, during birth or shortly after. It gives families the time and private space they need to create memories with their baby. It has been thoughtfully decorated to create a homely environment where bereaved parents and their families are able to spend precious time with their child.
Airedale Hospital benefits from having two 'Cuddle Cots' available, which fit into a Moses basket or a crib - to keep the environment homely at such a traumatic and emotional time. This specialist cooling device extends parents' precious time with their baby. The Sunbeam Suite is equipped with a beautiful wooden crib which can house a Cuddle Cot, and parents are able to stay in the Suite for as long as they wish to. Family and friends are welcome to visit, and parents are able to take their baby home or out of the hospital to a special place, if they would like to.
The room (when not occupied by a bereaved family) can also be used for parents/families who have previously lost a child and would like to return to the hospital to talk to midwives or simply to sit in a quiet space and think about their child.
The suite provides a calm, safe space, adjacent to Labour Ward, for parents who have lost a child during pregnancy, during birth or shortly after. It gives families the time and private space they need to create memories with their baby. It has been thoughtfully decorated to create a homely environment where bereaved parents and their families are able to spend precious time with their child.
Airedale Hospital benefits from having two 'Cuddle Cots' available, which fit into a Moses basket or a crib - to keep the environment homely at such a traumatic and emotional time. This specialist cooling device extends parents' precious time with their baby. The Sunbeam Suite is equipped with a beautiful wooden crib which can house a Cuddle Cot, and parents are able to stay in the Suite for as long as they wish to. Family and friends are welcome to visit, and parents are able to take their baby home or out of the hospital to a special place, if they would like to.
The room (when not occupied by a bereaved family) can also be used for parents/families who have previously lost a child and would like to return to the hospital to talk to midwives or simply to sit in a quiet space and think about their child.
How We Support The Sunbeam Suite...
One of the aims of Aidan's Elephants, is to ensure that The Sunbeam Suite is as comfortable and well equipped as possible for the families who sadly have reason to stay there.
We make regular donations of 'comfort items' for The Sunbeam Suite. Following requests from the midwifery team at Airedale General Hospital, and requests from bereaved parents who recently stayed in the Sunbeam Suite, our 2017 donation to The Sunbeam Suite included around £250 of 'comfort items'.
The donation included::
* Hair dryer and mirror with wicker storage basket.
* Set of towels (2x bath sheets, 4x bath towels, 4x hand towels).
* Bath mat.
* Linen/washing basket.
* Medium table lamp for sitting area.
* Bedside table lamps for bedroom area.
* Blanket / bed throw.
* Mattress protectors x2
* 4x Pillows
* Double fitted sheets x2
* Extra pillow cases x2
* Double bed duvet sets with pillows x2
* Kettle
* Storage jars for tea/coffee/sugar.
* Drinks coasters x4
* Storage ottoman.
* Essential Oil Diffuser and Essential Oils (please see the below section for details).
We make regular donations of 'comfort items' for The Sunbeam Suite. Following requests from the midwifery team at Airedale General Hospital, and requests from bereaved parents who recently stayed in the Sunbeam Suite, our 2017 donation to The Sunbeam Suite included around £250 of 'comfort items'.
The donation included::
* Hair dryer and mirror with wicker storage basket.
* Set of towels (2x bath sheets, 4x bath towels, 4x hand towels).
* Bath mat.
* Linen/washing basket.
* Medium table lamp for sitting area.
* Bedside table lamps for bedroom area.
* Blanket / bed throw.
* Mattress protectors x2
* 4x Pillows
* Double fitted sheets x2
* Extra pillow cases x2
* Double bed duvet sets with pillows x2
* Kettle
* Storage jars for tea/coffee/sugar.
* Drinks coasters x4
* Storage ottoman.
* Essential Oil Diffuser and Essential Oils (please see the below section for details).
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Reading a story to their child is something that many parents have pictured doing, for a long time. We want to ensure that bereaved parents have every opportunity possible to create special memories with their baby, and so we provide Airedale General Hospital with copies of the story book 'No Matter What' by Debi Gliori. These books have a personalisation sticker on them, so that parents can write their baby's name on their book, and keep it as a precious memento of the story they shared together. |
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Essential Oils in The Sunbeam Suite...
We recently donated an Essential Oil Diffuser and bottles of Rosemary and Lavender Essential Oils to The Sunbeam Suite.
Many of the bereaved families we speak to tell us that 'the smell of hospitals' is something that they find emotionally triggering and that they often immediately associate that smell with the worst time of their life. The Sunbeam Suite has been made as homely as possible with carefully chosen decor, but obviously it is located within a hospital and the characteristic scent of hospitals is unavoidable.
We decided that the safest, simplest way to create a positive, unique scent in the The Sunbeam Suite was to provide an essential oils diffuser. We felt that this would allow parents to associate a smell with the time they spent with their baby, and in time they may be able to breathe that same smell and remember those precious moments fondly. It would also mean that parents who return to hospital at any point in their life (illness, another child, visiting another person) may feel less emotionally triggered by the smell of hospitals.
Many of the bereaved families we speak to tell us that 'the smell of hospitals' is something that they find emotionally triggering and that they often immediately associate that smell with the worst time of their life. The Sunbeam Suite has been made as homely as possible with carefully chosen decor, but obviously it is located within a hospital and the characteristic scent of hospitals is unavoidable.
We decided that the safest, simplest way to create a positive, unique scent in the The Sunbeam Suite was to provide an essential oils diffuser. We felt that this would allow parents to associate a smell with the time they spent with their baby, and in time they may be able to breathe that same smell and remember those precious moments fondly. It would also mean that parents who return to hospital at any point in their life (illness, another child, visiting another person) may feel less emotionally triggered by the smell of hospitals.
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After looking into various essential oils, we found two which we felt would be right for The Sunbeam Suite. They can be used alone or mixed together to create a unique scent. The Airedale Midwives have access to the oils, and can assist parents with using the Oil Diffuser is they wish to.
* Rosemary, which symbolises remembrance and is believed to help provide a clear mind (and links to our Rosemary for Remembrance seed packs). * Lavender, which symbolises devotion and purity, and is believed to aid relaxation. Vapourisers and essential oils are inexpensive to buy, and parents may wish to purchase their own diffuser and oils to use at home - providing them with way of nurturing the everlasting bond they have with their baby. |
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