A new lounge recently opened in the maternity ward at the Helen Schneider Hospital for Women at Rabin Medical Center. This special lounge provides a special place for new mothers whose babies need to stay in the hospital after their mother's discharge to rest in between visiting and feeding their newborns.

Approximately 9,000 babies are born at the Helen Schneider Hospital for Women yearly and about seven percent of these are premature deliveries where the baby is still hospitalized after the mother goes home. During this period, bonding between the mother and baby is extremely crucial and the more time they are able to spend together the better.

Much of the mother's time is spent in the postnatal unit where the baby is hospitalized but there are times when she cannot be with her baby, when the baby needs to rest or when breastfeeding mothers need to pump their milk. The lounge presents the perfect combination of quiet relaxation in an area close to the postnatal unit. The lounge itself is divided into several areas, the main area with lounge chairs for resting with a TV, a computer area and a more secluded area with two reclining lounge chairs facing each other and connected to a breast pumping system.

Prof. Marek Glezerman, Director of the Helen Schneider Hospital for Women explains the importance of the new lounge, "We understand the need for new mothers to be as close as possible to their baby who has remained in the hospital after their discharge, along with the need for them to have a special place to rest and have some time to themselves. This special mother's lounge provides a homey environment until they can take their newborn to their real home."