Perinatal palliative care

Learning during your pregnancy that your baby has a life-limiting condition brings many feelings and concerns. At Advocate Children's Hospital, we are here – to listen, provide guidance and support, honor your wishes and ensure that you and your baby receive quality care. Our perinatal palliative care program features an interdisciplinary team that works with families from the time of diagnosis of their baby's medical condition, through the remainder of the pregnancy, labor and delivery, and after birth.

Our perinatal palliative care goals include:

• Honoring the relationship and love between parents and their child.
• Helping parents and families understand their baby's medical condition and treatment options.
• Assisting in making decisions about baby's care.
• Co-creating care plans that capture family preferences, values and hopes for the mother's care during labor and delivery (birth plan) and baby's care after birth (neonatal advance care plan).
• Communicating the family's care goals and preferences to all health team members.
• Offering opportunities to treasure time and make memories with baby before and after birth.
• Providing expert care to promote comfort and quality of life for baby and family.
• Providing compassionate end-of-life care and bereavement support.
• Coordinating care with community pediatric palliative care services for babies who stabilize after birth and go home with their parents.
• Providing support resources and follow-up care after discharge from the hospital.