The birth of a child with a congenital anomaly. Part I. Some difficulties experienced by parents in the maternity home.

An investigation study of 90 cases in which a baby had been born with cystic fibrosis, oesophageal atresia, Hirschsprung's disease or an anorectal malformation was undertaken to establish the duration of the prediagnostic phase and the difficulties experienced by parents before discharge from the maternity home. The congenital anomalies requiring immediate surgical intervention were diagnosed very soon after birth. A wider diversity of problems were encountered in the case of those conditions with a longer prediagnostic phase. The problems encountered by parents, viz. lack of communication with staff, fantasies of gross anomalies with fear for the baby's life, and the lack of viewing and mothering of the baby are discussed, and some long-term effects are highlighted.