From old age homes and retirement villages in Cape Town all the way to New South Wales in Australia, grandmothers have taken up their knitting needles to clothe the tiny premature babies in the neo-natal ward of the Tygerberg Children's Hospital.
Recently, the ward was abuzz with excitement when a shipment of brightly coloured beanies, booties and jerseys – knitted by Australian grandmother, Maureen Barnes - were handed out to mothers and their babies in the hospital's kangaroo care ward.
The hospital cares for 120 premature babies at any given time and is proud of its high survival rate, which is close to that of developed countries. Its tiny patients weigh between about 500 grams and 1500 grams and are carefully nurtured by the doctors, nurses and staff at the hospital.
Mothers, who often stay with their tiny babies in the kangaroo care ward, are usually excited and deeply grateful for such donations. "Sometimes they're the only clothes that the mothers have to go home with, so they're really appreciated," says the head of the Tygerberg neonatal unit, Prof Gert Kirsten.
The inspiration for the gifts from Australia came from a chance meeting between Barnes' daughter-in-law, Megan, and Archbishop Desmond Tutu in 1999. Megan, who was pregnant at the time, was working as a customs officer at Sydney Airport in 1999 when she met the emiritus Archbishop. She was so impressed by Tutu's kind words to her that she has kept in contact with him ever since and is a great supporter of Tygerberg Children's Hospital, of which Tutu is the patron.
Megan says her mother-in-law had spent much of her time in 2012 knitting outfits for the hospital's premature babies.
Kirsten also thanked the many local grandmothers for their generosity towards the hospital and the babies. Between 60 and 70 grandmothers from old age homes and retirement villages in Cape Town regularly knit outfits for premature babies and other children who are treated at the hospital.
"It means a lot to the mothers, and for many grandmothers, it gives them a greater purpose in life," said Kirsten.
The kangaroo care ward is often a haven for mothers whose babies are born prematurely or so small that they need special care. They are given accommodation in the ward and three meals a day. By carrying their tiny babies between their breasts, the mothers bond with the babies through skin-to-skin contact and help with their needs. Kirsten sees it a win-win situation for the hospital and the mothers.
"The mothers are a great help to us as they look after their babies while they're in the ward. At the same time, they're learning all the time. They learn how to handle their premature babies by bathing them, feeding them and taking them in and out of the incubators if needed. By the time they leave the hospital, the mothers are so confident. It's wonderful to see."
CAPTIONS FOR PHOTOGRAPHS
- Nurse Ncebakazi Gwele with 10-day-old baby, Mnconywa, in her new outfit.
- Zizipho France of Kraaifontein, whose twin boys were born at just over 700 grams each in November last year, have now more than doubled their weight in the kangaroo care ward. Here Iminathi and Imibongo are wearing their bright new beanies from Australia.
