The Tower of Refuge and Pulrose Power Station will be lit purple tonight, Monday 17 November, for World Prematurity Day.
 
The event, which began in 2009, aims to raise awareness about premature births which number around 15 million a year, roughly 1 in every 10 babies born.
 
Since January 2007, 988 premature babies have been admitted to the Neonatal Unit at Noble’s Hospital. 
 
Dr Prakash Thiagarajan, Consultant Paediatrician and Neonatologist at Noble's Hospital, said: "The advances in medical science mean that babies born prematurely have a higher chance of survival than ever before, which is very reassuring to the parents of pre-term babies.
 
“Premature birth cannot always be prevented, but about half are a result of lifestyle factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, and stress or medical conditions such as high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes.  By making people aware of the risk factors and encouraging these issues to be discussed and managed as part of prenatal care, we hope we can help to reduce the number of premature births.”
 
Whilst many premature babies will grow up to lead normal and active lives, they do have a higher risk of learning and behavioural problems, cerebral palsy, sensory and motor deficits, infections, and respiratory diseases.
 
World Prematurity Day is also a day to celebrate the adversities overcome by these babies and their families and to thank the neonatal teams that provide care for these babies.
 
Paul McCann, Lead Nurse for Neonatal Services at Noble’s Hospital, said: “Having a premature baby is a very distressing and demanding time for the parents, but the advances in neonatal nursing and medicine in terms of knowledge and skills means that we are able to deliver a very high standard of care even to the most premature of babies.  We work very hard with these babies and their families to ensure that every possible support is given.  Education and support, both pre-birth and post-delivery, is vital and this is a big part of what World Prematurity Day is all about.”
 
The care needs of premature babies range from special care, to high dependency care, and intensive care.  The Island’s Neonatal Unit is a Level 2 unit, which means that it can provide both special care and high dependency care.  Short-term intensive care can be provided on the Island, but there remain occasions when some babies require transfer to a Level 3 unit in the UK.
 
Minister for Health and Social Care, Howard Quayle MHK, said: “I fully support the efforts of the neonatal team to mark World Prematurity Day and raise awareness.  We are fortunate to have a new state of the art Neonatal Unit under construction, which will improve the ward environment and the already high quality of care, allowing us to meet the latest standards.  But we must continue to educate people on the risk factors – particularly lifestyle choices – that are likely to lead to chances of pre-term labour.”
 
The Tower of Refuge and Pulrose Power Station are already lit for the month of November for Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month in a campaign being led by the family of John Dale who sadly lost his battle against pancreatic cancer in July.  The family has kindly agreed to share the 17 November in aid of raising awareness of both causes.
 
The Department wishes to express its thanks to the Dale family, the Department of Infrastructure’s Estates Shared Services and the Manx Utilities Authority.