New baby-saving incubator helps to safely place newborns at the Heim Pál National Pediatric Institute

A well-accessible, clearly marked and safe baby rescue system is of vital importance for mothers in crisis. Taking into account the experience, the decision was made to create the opportunity to place a new incubator in our Institute’s Üllői úti center, which has a significant patient flow, thus strengthening safe care options.

The purpose of creating baby-saving incubators is precisely to save the lives of newborns in those extremely difficult, often desperate life situations when the mother or the family feels that they cannot take on the responsibility of raising the child. In Hungary, in 1996, an incubator was first placed in a public place for this purpose at the Schöpf-Mérei Hospital, and after its closure, since 2009, the baby-saving incubator operating in the Heim Pál National Pediatric Institute’s Children’s Hospital on Madarász Street has provided a safe haven for children. The system was created so that the newborn is not put in a life-threatening, vulnerable situation, but can immediately be placed in a safe, heated, controlled environment, where medical care can begin immediately.

The handover of the incubator was attended by Dr. Anikó Nagy, Chief Physician of the Director General, Dr. Ferenc Ákos Kamarás, Chief of Staff of the State Secretariat for Health, and Dr. Zsolt Bognár, Chief Physician of the Department of the Emergency Care Center.

The handover was attended byDr. Ferenc Ákos Kamarás emphasized: “Our important message for all mothers is that in Hungary, baby-saving incubators offer a safe, legal and anonymous option for those who are forced to make the most difficult decision. The goal of the system is not to judge, but to protect life: so that the newborn is safe and has a chance at life, care, and later to be placed in a family.”

Dr. At the handover, Anikó Nagy, the director general, spoke about how the Heim Pál National Pediatric Institute does everything it can to ensure that every newborn has a chance at life, that every child receives appropriate care as quickly as possible, and that mothers in crisis know that they are not alone, that there is someone to turn to even in the most difficult moments, and that there is humane and safe help. As she put it: “Both of our baby-saving incubators provide mothers with a safe and anonymous opportunity to place their newborns. In recent years, 17 babies have been entrusted to us, including newborns and babies several days old. Most of them were put into the incubator dressed in the early hours of the morning.”

Zsolt Bognár, the head of the department of the Emergency Care Center, emphasized at the handover: “The new baby rescue incubator is located on the Üllői út side of the institution in a more protected place, near which there is no patient traffic in the evening. We provide a reassuring and discreet solution for mothers, the newborn is placed anonymously, in a heated, safe environment. After the mother has placed her child in the incubator and said goodbye to her child, she can press a bell to indicate that our colleagues can go to get the baby. The sound signal reaches the colleagues of the Emergency Care Center, who are close enough to immediately begin their care.” Heim Pál National Pediatric Institute asks mothers to ensure that, no matter what decision they make about their child’s future, the safety of their baby should always be their top priority. The warmed baby incubators in our hospitals offer anonymity and freedom from police repercussions to those making this extremely difficult decision.