Sleep and Settle program at Gold Coast Private Hospital helps babies and parents get more sleep

WHEN it comes to having a newborn baby, getting some much-needed sleep can sometimes be a rarity. Thankfully a new Gold Coast infant sleep program is hoping to change things around for exhausted parents.

Pictured at the Gold Coast Private Hospital at Southport New Mum Leanne Fletcher and her 7 month old Baby Emelia Butcher after attending the New bub settling course on offer at the Gold Coast private hospital. Picture Mike Batterham

EXHAUSTED new parents will have help finding shut eye thanks to a new Gold Coast infant sleep program.

The Sleep and Settle program at the Gold Coast Private Hospital, which opened this month, aims to help unhappy bubs get some rest with advanced settling techniques.

For mother of two Leanne Fletcher the first through the program, the round the clock help was a godsend.

The 33-year-old who had given birth to her second child, said she found herself in tears daily after her seven-week-old baby Emelia refused to settle.

Exhausted and at her wits end, the Mermaid Waters mother said she was lucky to get two hours sleep a night.

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Pictured at the Gold Coast Private Hospital at Southport New Mum Leanne Fletcher and her 7-month-old Baby Emelia Butcher with paediatrics Unit nurse manager Emma Gerrard (on right) after attending their New bub settling course on offer at the Gold Coast Private hospital. Picture Mike Batterham

“I was dealing with extreme exhaustion and just knew I couldn’t keep up anymore, so I went to my GP in tears and just feeling so helpless”

It was then Ms Fletcher was introduced to the Sleep and Settle program.

“The moment we walked through the doors, it was like an instant weight had lifted off my

shoulders,” she said.

“For the first day, the nurses took care of Emelia while I got some rest, then they observed our family routine and lifestyle, to work out what we could do to help her settle more easily.

In three days, Leanne says she couldn’t believe the difference.

“It was like I had a new baby.”

“The fogginess we felt as a family was clearing,” she said.

Gold Coast Private Paediatric Care Manager, Emma Gerrard, says the new program is modelled from the infant sleep program developed by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne.

Designed to assist babies up to 12 month of age, she said it is an arm of support for families

struggling to establish a routine.

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Pictured at the Gold Coast Private Hospital at Southport New Mum Leanne Fletcher and her 7 month old Baby Emelia Butcher with paediatrics Unit nurse manager Emma Gerrard. Picture Mike Batterham

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The course, run by the Paediatric Care Centre offers one parent and child a private room with meals and around-the-clock care and advice to get baby sleep routines back on track.

Mrs Gerrard says while some sleepless nights are expected with a baby in the house, it isn’t normal for infants to be consistently unsettled.

“Parents have the added comfort of knowing they’re in a professional space with paediatric nurses, ensuring they go home with the skills and confidence to implement a routine that suits them,” she said.

The Gold Coast Private Sleep and Settle Program can be accessed via a referral from a Paediatrician or GP.

The cost of the program is generally covered by private health insurance but it is also open to uninsured patients for a fee.