Puppy petter. Ice cream eater. Nap participant. Wine taster. Baby snuggler.Of the dream volunteer jobs that routinely top the wish list, that last one is very much a real thing.
Here in Buffalo, John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital and Mercy and Sisters of Charity hospitals offer volunteer baby cuddler programs that serve the hospitals’ Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU), special areas where premature babies and newborns with complications spend time getting strong enough to go home.
Specially trained volunteers visit the NICU in carefully coordinated shifts to cuddle newborns when their parents can’t be there. Volunteers might gently rock little ones, sing songs softly, read books to their charges or just provide them with a supportive place to snooze.
Lisa Carey, supervisor of volunteer services for Catholic Health, says an informal version of the program is as old as the hospitals themselves.
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“From the earliest days, the nuns—the Sisters of Mercy—would come in and cuddle the babies who had to spend extra time in the hospital,” she explains. “The practice has always been there; we just recruit volunteers to help now.”
Studies have shown that cuddle time in a busy NICU has a calming effect that helps babies sleep better and fuss less. A community of cuddlers give parents peace of mind that their newborns have extra caring company when they need to go home to care for other children, pets and themselves, or return to work. NICU nurses appreciate the extra hands that let them focus on the medical needs of infants who may have a multitude of health risks and conditions.
Visiting the NICU to hold new babies is also rewarding for volunteers, says Kathie Lafko of West Seneca, who has served as a NICU cuddler at Mercy Hospital since 2015.
“As I was getting close to retiring after 39 years with the New York State Department of Transportation, I knew this was something I wanted to do,” she explains. “I’ve always enjoyed the infant stage.”
While this might sound like the ideal volunteer gig to many, participation in the program warrants rigorous screening and training to handle fragile babies.
To join the NICU Cuddler Program at Mercy or Sisters, volunteers must fill out an application, participate in an interview, pass a background check and spend at least six months volunteering in another area of the hospital first. Before heading to the NICU, volunteer cuddlers undergo specialized training led by a NICU nurse that covers safety measures, proper holding positions and what to expect. Availability to cover a minimum of one two-hour shift per week is preferred.
Kathie volunteers for one shift each week and decided to stick with it even after her grown children started having babies of their own.
“Since I began volunteering, all three of my sons have given me grandchildren,” she says. “I continued after they were born because it’s so good for the premature babies. They sleep really well after the nurses feed them and hand them to us if mom has gone home.”
Learn more about becoming a baby cuddler at Mercy and Sisters of Charity hospitals (Catholic Health) or John R. Oishei Hospital (Kaleida Health):
Catholic Health
716-862-1106
Kaleida Health
