Charity supporting parents dealing with miscarriage teams up with Guy’s and St Thomas’

A charity which supports parents dealing with early pregnancy loss has launched at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

Cradle offers services for bereaved families including comfort bags, outpatient support packs and peer support with a national network of volunteers.

Guy’s and St Thomas’ is the first trust in London to work with the national charity, which supports grandparents and siblings as well as parents.

Research nurse Leanna Brace set up the partnership with Cradle at St Thomas’ Hospital after working with bereaved parents who said they felt alone, isolated and found it difficult to talk about their experiences with family, friends and colleagues.

Under the partnership, women who have lost a pregnancy in its early stages and are admitted to hospital receive a comfort bag for them and their partners.

This includes donated essential items such as toiletries and notepads for them to write down questions or thoughts, as well as a “Dear friend” letter with details of how to access support from the charity.

Serafina Salvador, 39, had a miscarriage in early 2018 after a series of scans at St Thomas’ Hospital couldn’t find a heartbeat for her baby.

Writer Serafina, from Clapham, said: “It was my first pregnancy. I was quite shocked – I had not even considered the possibility of a miscarriage.

“I had no idea of what was to come or how this would play out. My realisation was more pronounced once I had had the miscarriage, because I realised so many women I knew had had one, but never talked about it.

“Pregnancy is not just a physical change in a woman’s body – it’s a psychological and hormonal change, too.

“After a miscarriage, these changes affect women in different ways. Education about ways the family can heal from it are essential to the process.”

Pictured top: Serafina Salvador