Hypothermia in babies born before arrival at hospital

 

Summary:

Babies born unexpectedly outside of hospital are at increased risk of hypothermia, which can cause health problems for babies and increase the risk of neonatal death. This research showed that paramedics need access to more training and better equipment to ensure they can properly measure babies’ temperatures and keep them warm, while 999-call handlers’ scripts need to be updated so that parents receive the most effective advice on how to keep newborn babies warm. 

Sands supported a research study from the University of the West of England to address the issue of hypothermia in babies born unexpectedly at home or outside of the hospital. The study focused on unexpected births where paramedics would be called out in emergency and did not include planned homebirths. The findings revealed that paramedics rarely recorded newborn babies’ temperatures, and that a third of these babies were hypothermic by the time they arrived at hospital. 

The study identified several barriers that paramedics face, such as lack of suitable equipment, including special baby thermometers and warming mattresses, and prioritising the other emergency care tasks involved in looking after mother and baby. The research recommended improved training and providing better equipment for paramedics so they could measure babies’ temperatures and manage potential hypothermia more effectively.

 

Impact:

This research has already had significant impact, with the South West Ambulance service implementing new training and guidance for paramedics, improving the amount and quality of equipment available and introducing changes to electronic records to enable systematic recording of babies’ temperatures outside of hospital. Alongside this, changes have been made to the scripts used by 999 call-handlers to make sure parents are given the most effective advice about keeping their baby warm while waiting for paramedics to arrive after an unexpected birth.    

The research has won awards, including the ‘research most likely to influence practice’ prize at the 999EMS conference for research about the emergency services. It has also had wider impact and been highlighted on local BBC news. 

Associate Professor Laura Goodwin, who led the research at the University of the West of England, also kindly agreed to share her story with Sands.  

 

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