The Premature Baby Book: A Parents Guide to Coping and Caring in the First Years [Paperback]

Helen Harrison (Author), Ann Kositsky (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 1983

The Premature Baby Book is the result of seven years of intense research into medical literature, and of interview with neonatologists, intensive care nurses, social workers, therapists and hundreds of parents of prematures. From her research and personal experience, Helen Harrison knows exactly what parents want and need to know to deal with the emotional, medical, and practical issues facing them after the birth of a premature baby.

Proceeds from the sale of The Premature Baby Book will be donated to organizations that help premature babies and their families.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The book is splended and will certainly fill a real need for mothers and fathers of prematures. I admire the scholarly approach--it's a great job!" --T. Berry Brazelton, M.D., Chief of the Child Development Unit at Harvard Medican School; author of Doctor & Child, Infants & Mothers, Toddlers & Parents, and On Becoming a Family

"I am impressed...just the kind of thing that is so badly needed...strikes just the right note with the balance of information and the experiences of parents." --Martin P.M. Richards, Ph.D., psychologist, Child Care Development Group, University of Cambridge, England

"Helen Harrison and Ann Kositsky have done a monumental job in producing this book, which so sentively integrates the facts and feelings accompanying premature birth." --from the Foreward by Roberta A. Ballard, M.D., Chief, Department of Pediatrics and Director, Newborn Services, Mount Zion Hospital and Medical Center, San Francisco, California

"While my daughter was in the nursery, I read and reread the medical sections pertaining to her condition. The information was a great help and a comfort to me. At last, a 'Doctor Spock' for parents of preamature babies!" --Jo Eckerly, mother of a premie

"I learned a lot from reading The Premature Baby Book, especially about respitory distress syndrome (RDS) and about follow-up of premautres--information that still pertains to my three-year[-old prematurely born son." --Juliene Lipson, R.N., Ph.D. and mother of a premie

"Reading the experiences of others helped me cope with the strict bed rest, the medications and disappointment I felt as missing the perfect pregnancy and birth I'd hoped for. It would have taken hours of discussion with my OB and a neonatologist to impart the wealth of detailed knowledge I gained from The Premature Baby Book." --Alexandra Escher, mother of two premature babies

About the Author

Helen Harrison lives in Berkeley California with her husband Alfred, and their two children--Edward, born eleven weeks prematurely and Amy, born at term. She counsels new parents of premature babies, and edits a Bay-area newsletter for parents of high-risk babies.

Ann Kositsky, R.N., also of Berkeley, has worked, for over ten years as a neonatal intensive care nurse.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 1 edition (July 15, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312636490
• ISBN-13: 978-0312636494
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,446,140 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Nursery Nurse Speaks Out, July 21, 2003

By 

Linda S. Cole (Walnut Creek, Ca. United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Premature Baby Book: A Parents Guide to Coping and Caring in the First Years (Paperback)

As a Intensive Care Nursery Nurse, as well as the parent of a former premature baby, Helen Harrison's book is extremely outdated. It was a bible when it was first published in 1983, but the field of neonatal medicine is constantly changing and any book written over 5 years ago is probably outdated, not to mention 20 years ago. My hat is off to Helen Harrison for her pioneering the field of premature parenting,but there are many other more recent books which will be far more useful to premature parents than this one. Linda Cole RN

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Laurel's Primer for Parents of Micro-Preemies, November 15, 2000

By 

Lawrence J. Gist II (Palos Verdes, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Premature Baby Book: A Parents Guide to Coping and Caring in the First Years (Paperback)

As the father of two identical twin girls born at 26 weeks andaveraging 2 pounds each -- I found The Premature Baby Book to be veryhelpful in gaining an understanding of premature care and treatment. Iordered the book written by Helen Harrison and Ann Kositsky (as wellas several others) and found their book to be the most comprehensiveof books on the market addressing premature birth. My only criticismof the book is that many of the statistics utilized within the bookare out-dated and present a somewhat pessimistic view regardingpremature survival and disabilities. I highly recommend this book ifyou have a premature child.

Note that my daughter, Laurel, did notsurvive. After 24 days of making steady improvement, Laurel contractedNEC and rapidly deteriorated. Laurel's identical twin sister, Caitlin,is now 2 1/2 years old and is both health and happy. However, in manyways my mind and feelings still live the trauma of my children beingmicro-preemies. In Laurel's memory I wrote a booklet (distributed forfree) just for parents of micro-preemies. The booklet is not intendedto replace the book length treatment of the issues addressed in ThePremature Baby Book, rather the booklet is designed to give parentssome basic information pending the arrival of their Amazon order...that you have the need to order The Premature Baby Book. You and yourfamily will be in my thoughts.

Laurel's Dad

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Preemie Bible.., August 16, 1997

By 

[e-mail] (US - North Carolina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Premature Baby Book: A Parents Guide to Coping and Caring in the First Years (Paperback)

This book is considered the NICU/preemie bible. Anyone with a child born prematurely would find the information in this book helpful -- although the book is rather old, it contains information that can lead you to ask the right questions, to ask for the right tests, etc. etc. My son was born prematurely but I didn't find this book until months after he was released from NICU. The moment I got it I absorbed everything I could and wished I'd had it when my son was still in NICU. It answers questions that doctors tend to dance around. The author is a very nice woman -- I've talked with her online in preemie support groups and I understand she is working on an updated version. The stories of various "outcomes" of preemies was especially moving for me. If you know someone who has a child in NICU or who recently had a preemie, this is an excellent book to recommend. I think every NICU should have a copy to loan to parents.