Evaluation of pilot programme shows reduced stress among parents when coping with crying tots

A charity is aiming to reduce non-accidental head injuries in infants through a project supporting new parents cope with crying babies.

An evaluation into an NSPCC pilot programme to help new parents cope with a crying baby shows that it reduces stress.

A film, Coping with Crying, shows parents-to-be and new parents how to care for a crying baby with parents who watched the film saying they better understood infant crying.

They also had improved knowledge of coping strategies and the impact of shaking their baby could have.

Coping with Crying is currently available in hospitals in Wishaw in Lanarkshire and at Dundee, Perth and Arbroath in Tayside.

Parents were reacting in a positive way and were seeking help when necessary.

Audrey Fleming, children’s services manager at NSPCC Scotland, explained: “Concerns about babies’ crying are one of the most common reasons that new parents seek help from professionals. It is common for parents to feel frustrated, and in the worst cases they can lose their temper and harm their baby.”

Since the film began being piloted in 2012, more than 57,000 parents have watched the film in hospitals and antenatally and postnatally across the UK.

Fleming continued: “The evaluation showed that at times of stress, parents were reacting in a positive way and were seeking help when necessary. They were more likely to put the baby down in a safe place when they were stressed and struggling to cope. They also used the recommended soothing strategies more often.

“Nearly all parents who viewed the film said they were able to remember it up to six months after seeing it.”