Every parent is unique and is aware that children need opportunities and enrichment at every age stage, and the decision whether to remain in employment or not, after the birth of child is decided upon differently. For mothers who decide to terminate employment for some time to rear their children, their social security contribution will…
The summer days have now begun, and long days in the sun become more frequent, with beach trips, BBQs, and other outdoor activities taking place on a regular basis. We are all familiar with Malta’s harsh summers, from the scorching sun to our winged friends to wreak their bloody habit again, which is why it…
The first three years of one’s life are the most important for brain development, in fact what a baby does or learns during that time s/he will not lose. On the other hand, if s/he doesn’t learn through exposure to certain environments, relationships and stimuli s/he may never learn later in life. Furthermore the ability…
Between school-work and the increasingly popular video games and tablet-use, children seem to be spending more and more time indoors. This trend has prompted a number of studies which have been published highlighting the negative impact the lack of outdoor activity is having on children’s development and health. But what are the real benefits of…
“Of course you should breastfeed!” “Maybe you shouldn’t breastfeed.” “Are you still breastfeeding?!” “Have you stopped breastfeeding already?!” “I felt no pain whatsoever.” “It was excruciating.” “Are you sure you want to do this?” Frankly, we wouldn’t blame any mother for feeling confused or downright scared when it comes to breastfeeding. Too many people have…
Every parent wants the best for their child. No doubt. I am convinced that people who choose not to vaccinate are doing so because they genuinely believe that injecting something into their baby could ultimately harm their baby instead of protect them. I have these discussions often. The general feeling I get is that some people…
While packing your hospital bag many questions will pop up. We tried to answer most of them by speaking to a number of mummies and a midwife who works at Mater Dei Hospital to include the extra items one would not find in the normal hospital bag lists, and also remove those that are not…
Lately ‘mummy tummy’ or as scientifically known ‘diastasis recti’ is being more widely recognized and there is improved awareness on how to manage it. In my practice as a physiotherapist, I still meet a lot of new mothers who are given misleading advice and get confused as to what they can do to fix the…
The professional who works with communication disorders is often called a ‘speech therapist.’ However, a ‘speech therapist’ evaluates and works not only on speech difficulties. Given this, I prefer to use the term ‘Speech-Language Pathologist’ (SLP), even though it does not describe our profession fully because we also evaluate and manage feeding and social difficulties.…
The Breastfeeding Walk-In Clinic is not only about breastfeeding. It’s about infant feeding and providing support to mothers. This is the first thing that Practice Midwife Helen Borg , who runs this clinic at Mater Dei Hospital highlights when we sit down with her. “Our main aim is to make sure that babies are happy…