ABSTRACT

The period after delivery (postpartum period) is defined as a period of developmental crisis in which the infant is integrated into the family system and the mother’s social, physical and emotional adaptation occurs. In this period, lack of knowledge of mothers about infant care, growth and development, and normal characteristics of the baby may be the source of anxiety, decrease satisfaction with their parental role and affect negatively the change of life style. For a new mother, ability to care for her infant and development of self-confidence are important. During this special time mothers and their families mostly need for an individualized care and an emphatic health staff providing counselling. In postpartum period, pediatric nurses are the leading persons who help parents to communicate with and feed the infant, and to understand behavioral patterns during sleeping and calming activities, and they are counselling persons who make it easy adaptation to successful baby care and parenting. Postpartum follow-up programs, in which infants and mothers are evaluated physically, emotionally and socially, and education and counselling are given provide an innovative and cost-effective model and are important with respect to the continuation of mother’s and infant’s physical and mental health.