Every year approximately 10% of all babies are born premature (before 37 weeks gestation) in New Zealand. That’s one premature baby born every 90 minutes. There are also full-term babies whose condition or illness requires admission to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) after they are born. In all, over 5,000 babies have a difficult to start life in New Zealand each year. With premature birth, while sometimes there is a history, or a medical condition which may lead to premature birth, more often than not, a mother goes into premature labour with no warning. With full term babies, parents may know their baby is going to be born with a complication requiring admission to a NICU. In other circumstances, the complication becomes apparent once the baby is born. All of these parents are thrust into a terrifying world where their much loved tiny (sick) baby, who they have just met, is surrounded by machines, beeps, alarms, wires, needles, doctors and nurses. The parents often feel helpless. While the birth of your baby is usually a joyous event, this is a traumatic and very stressful time and depending on the condition of the baby, the parents may be on this journey for a few days, a few weeks or many months. We are committed to "Making a difficult start to life that little bit easier"