Kangaroo mother care: a clinical practice guide

Overview

This guide is designed to help health workers support mothers and families in practising Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) in health facilities at all levels of care and at home. It also provides brief guidance for health facility administrators and programme managers on what they need to do to support KMC practice in health facilities.

Kangaroo Mother Care is the term used for care of preterm and low-birth-weight newborns in prolonged skin-to-skin contact initiated as soon as possible after birth, with exclusive breast milk feeding.