In The News
National Center on Shaken Baby Prevention program called The Period of PURPLE Crying is part of a comprehensive statewide effort to reduce the incidence of shaken baby syndrome. Read more
Alfond College Challenge
Maine babies born in 2009 can start a college investing account with a $500 grant from the Alfond Scholarship Foundation. Learn more about the Harold Alfond College Challenge.
Birth Announcements
Maine Medical Center made the decision to stop releasing birth information to local newspapers. There have been a few questions about this change. Read more
Recall Information - Convertible Cribs by Playkids USA
View more information about the crib recalls from U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Bella Baby now providing photography service to families delivering in the Family Birth Center. Read more
Birth Announcements
Maine Medical Center made the decision to stop releasing birth information to local newspapers. There have been a few questions about this change.
MMC bases its newborn safety standards on the Center for Missing & Exploited Children's Guidelines on Prevention of and Response to Infant Abductions. For more info: www.missingkids.com
Since letting local newspapers know they will no longer receive birth information from MMC, positive stories have appeared in the Portland Press Herald and the Boston Globe. Many US hospitals stopped sharing birth announcement information with newspapers years ago, and MMC is not the first in Maine to do so. Stopping this practice is part of our overall quality initiative to increase infant safety. The safety of our newborns and families is very important to us -- it's why we made this change.
The Portland Press Herald plans to begin publishing instructions for families who wish to submit announcements on their own.
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Bella Baby now providing photography service to families delivering in the Family Birth Center. Read more
Bella Baby is the new face of hospital baby portraiture. (They) bring experienced free-lance photographers into the hospitals to capture your baby's first photograph with a natural, artistic style. (They)believe that babies look the most beautiful when being held in their parents' arms or cuddled in one of their own baby blankets. Bella Baby captures this beauty by using only "real things"....natural window light, real photographers and professional grade SLR digital cameras. We look forward to working with you and to capturing photographs that show the "real" beauty of your family.
Patients will be able to view their photos the same day. Photos will also be posted on their website for family-viewing and additional ordering. To learn more about Bella Baby, visit their website at www.bellababyphotography.com.
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National Center on Shaken Baby Prevention program called 'The Period of PURPLE Crying' is part of a comprehensive statewide effort to reduce the incidence of shaken baby syndrome. This evidence-based program educates parents and caretakers on normal infant crying, the most common trigger for shaking an infant. The letters in PURPLE stand for the common parts of non-stop crying in infants:
- Peak pattern (crying peaks around 2 months, then decreases)
- Unpredictable (crying for long periods can come and go for no reason)
- Resistant to soothing (the baby may keep crying for long periods)
- Pain-like look on face
- Long bouts of crying (crying can go on for hours)
- Evening crying (baby cries more in the afternoon and evening)
The website for more info is www.dontshake.org.
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