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Babies in Red Hats: Raising Awareness of Congenital Heart Defects
January 30, 2019
Pictured above: Angelica Otero of Willimantic holds her new baby boy Joeziah Cummings Otero who was born Jan. 26 at the Windham Hospital Birthing Center.
They may not be aware of it quite yet, but babies born at Hartford HealthCare hospitals in February are taking part in their own effort to raise awareness for heart health.
Birthing Center staff at The Hospital of Central Connecticut are ready for Little Hats, Big Hearts 2019.
It’s the standard each day for babies born at Backus Hospital, Charlotte Hungerford Hospital, Hartford Hospital, MidState Medical Center, The Hospital of Central Connecticut and Windham Hospital to be bathed, weighed, measured, swaddled and bedecked with a small knitted or crocheted cap to help keep them warm. In February, though, those hats are bright red, as handcrafted by volunteers from across the nation as part of Little Hats, Big Hearts.
Little Hats, Big Hearts is the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s campaign to help raise awareness of the No. 1 birth defect in the United States: congenital heart defects. These are structural problems with the heart that are present at birth and, if found and treated early, help kids live longer and stronger.
Parents will also receive information and education about congenital heart defects as part of this nationwide awareness program.
For more information on heart health services at Hartford HealthCare, click here.