Baby Buddy, is a free app from the parenting charity, Best Beginnings. It’s designed to help parents give their child the best start in life, with bite sized information and advice from pregnancy, to birth, to their baby’s first year.
North East London CCG are the first region in London to launch a local 2.0 version of the app, with all the local maternity units. Working in partnership with The Royal London Hospital, Homerton University Hospital, Whipps Cross Hospital, Newham Hospital and Queen’s Hospital, the app now features bespoke information from each of the maternity units. This means pregnant people who are booked to give birth in North East London can access additional details about their maternity unit, including; specialist maternity services offered, maternity helpline and antenatal and postnatal clinic phone numbers, visitor and parking information for birth partners and links to their local Maternity Voices Partnership. In 2022 it will also feature areas such as pelvic health, perinatal mental health and neonatal services.
The Baby Buddy app already echoes the advice and guidance of midwives and is endorsed by health professionals*. It has birth planning tools, a personal child health record for growth, vaccinations, appointments and other development milestones and daily personalised content for mums, dads and non-birthing co-parents. With personal care and support plans, parents can make informed choices about care for themselves and their babies, improving experience from pregnancy to babies first birthday. Version 2.0 launched in November 2021, with updated, additional features.
North East London Local Maternity and Neonatal System (NEL LMNS) want to ensure all pregnant people in their communities have access to the most up to date and helpful information to guide them through their pregnancy. The use of the Baby Buddy app with localisation, alongside antenatal, midwife and other NHS appointments means they have access to guidance and support whenever they need it, to ensure we continue to improve experiences for all pregnant people and new parents.
To download or for more information visit the Baby Buddy website: www.babybuddyapp.co.uk or for more information from NEL LMNS email: elhcp.maternity@nhs.net
*Baby Buddy is endorsed by Royal College of General Practitioners, Royal College of Midwives, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Community Practitioners and Health Visitors Association, Royal College of Psychiatrists, Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists, British Society of Paediatric Dentistry and Faculty of Public Health.