FREDERICK, Md. (DC News Now) — Being the new mother of a newborn can be challenging at times. But through Frederick Health’s Family Connects program, local mothers can get some extra help and now that the program is expanding, more mothers will be able to benefit.
Charlene Diggs is a mother to her six-year-old daughter and now her six-month-old son, Michael Junior. Even though Michael is her second child she says his birth was a challenging experience.
“I had some worries because I had a c-section,” Diggs said. “I didn’t have that with the first one, so it was a little concerning trying to navigate having a newborn plus a six-year-old and then having to worry about surgery.”
But with her growing family Diggs was able to bounce back with help from the nurses through the Family Connects program.
“We provide mother-baby nurses who visit at any time after a baby arrives up to 12 weeks, and nurses can offer basic health care checks for both the baby and the birthing parents,” Family Connects Community Alignment Specialist, Maria Wardlow explained.
“We realized that he was having dairy intolerance. And my main concern was that he was crying for 12 hours straight, not sleeping, not nothing and she gave me some resources on a different type of formula,” Diggs explained. “Since then, he’s just been such a happy baby.”
“The program’s expansion aims to help all new mothers, even those whose babies aren’t born at Frederick Health.
“The families are accepting us as a part of comprehensive care for both themselves and for their babies,” Wardlow said. “So we’re able to offer this to as many people as possible.”
Since its launch last year, the Family Connects program has helped almost 1,100 families.
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