8 HEART HEALTH | 2019 | www.elitecme.com HEART DISEASE  | T he benefits of skin-to-skin contact between a mother (or father) and a newborn immediately after delivery are well documented today. For parents and babies who experience a routine birth, the advantages of having baby placed on mom’s bare chest include soothing, temperature reg- ulation, and better odds that breastfeeding will occur. Of course, not all births are considered rou- tine. Prolonged labor, malposition, non-reas- suring fetal status, and perinatal asphyxia are Heart Disease at Day 1 Nurses at Michigan’s Children’s Hospital are educating parents of babies born with heart disease about when interventions can wait in lieu of bonding. by Joe Darrah ISTOCK