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5 Australian Charities Supporting Premature and Seriously ill Babies
Welcoming a new baby is usually a time filled with excitement, celebration and plans for the future. For some Australian families, however, those first days and months can look very different. Premature birth, serious illness, congenital conditions and life-limiting diagnoses can mean long hospital stays, specialist treatment and an incredibly uncertain time for parents and loved ones.
Across Australia, a number of organisations are working every day to make that journey a little easier. From supporting families in neonatal intensive care to providing children's hospice and palliative care, these charities offer practical help, emotional support, information and hope when families need it most.
Here are five Australian organisations doing important work for babies, children and their families.
1. Miracle Babies Foundation
Miracle Babies Foundation supports families with premature and sick newborns throughout Australia. Their support can begin during a high-risk pregnancy and continue through a baby's time in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit or Special Care Nursery, as well as after the family returns home.
The organisation provides resources, peer support and programs designed to help parents navigate what can be an overwhelming and unfamiliar experience. Their work also recognises that the effects of an early or complicated birth can continue well beyond a baby's hospital stay.
Visit Miracle Babies Foundation
2. Life's Little Treasures Foundation
Life's Little Treasures Foundation is dedicated to supporting families of premature and sick babies. Founded by parents who understood the challenges of having a premature baby firsthand, the organisation provides information and practical support to families during hospital stays and after they return home.
Its services include support groups, resources, care packages and assistance designed to help parents feel less alone during a difficult period in their baby's early life.
Visit Life's Little Treasures Foundation
3. HeartKids
HeartKids supports babies, children, adults and families affected by childhood-onset heart disease. For some families, a heart condition is discovered during pregnancy or soon after their baby is born, beginning a journey involving specialist appointments, hospital stays and sometimes surgery.
HeartKids provides emotional, practical and informational support for families across Australia, including support within hospitals and assistance for families experiencing grief and bereavement.
Visit HeartKids
4. Very Special Kids
Very Special Kids supports Victorian children and young people with life-limiting conditions, together with their families. The organisation provides specialist paediatric palliative care, family support and access to Victoria's children's hospice.
Its support extends throughout a family's journey, including respite care, end-of-life care and bereavement support. The organisation also helps parents and siblings navigate the emotional and practical challenges that can accompany caring for a seriously ill child.
Visit Very Special Kids
5. Bear Cottage
Bear Cottage is a children's hospice in New South Wales providing care for children with life-limiting conditions and support for their families. Its services include respite care, symptom management and end-of-life care in a welcoming environment designed to feel more like a home than a hospital.
Bear Cottage also provides antenatal and perinatal palliative care for families who learn during pregnancy or shortly after birth that their baby has a life-limiting condition. This support can help families navigate an extraordinarily difficult time with specialist care and compassion.
Visit Bear CottageSupporting Families When They Need It Most
Behind every organisation on this list are healthcare professionals, volunteers, supporters and families working together during some of life's most challenging moments. Their services can provide reassurance, practical assistance and a sense of community when the experience of caring for a premature or seriously ill baby can otherwise feel incredibly isolating.
Australians who would like to support these organisations can visit their websites to learn more about donating, fundraising, volunteering or simply helping to raise awareness of the work they do.
At Cotton Cuddles, so much of what we do centres around celebrating the arrival of a little one. We also believe it is important to recognise and support the organisations caring for families whose journey into parenthood may begin very differently.
