Marking her first major solo engagement since she was given her new title by King Charles III, Princess Catherine of Wales toured a hospital in Surrey during which she cradled a premature baby.
New mum, Sylvia Novak, met the Princess during her tour of the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford to learn about its work with pregnant women and new mothers. Sylvia asked the Princess if she would like to hold her newborn premature daughter, Bianca, to which the Princess replied: “Am I allowed to?”
“She’s very sweet”
Pictures showed the princess sitting in the hospital room, carefully holding the baby in both arms as she chatted to the mother. “She’s very sweet”, Kate said of the newborn.
One patient mentioned that Kate had asked her whether she had thought of any names for her child.
When the patient responded that she had, the princess said: “Everyone already has names for their babies! It took us ages to name ours”.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have three children of their own; Prince George, nine, Princess Charlotte, seven, and Prince Louis, four.
The prospects for premature babies are improving all the time
The hospital’s maternity unit cares for around 3,000 babies each year. The Princess’s visit included a tour of the hospital’s special care baby unit, which provides specialist neonatal care for tiny and premature babies.
The prospects for premature babies are constantly improving. Earlier this year, John Wyatt, Professor of Ethics and Perinatology at University College London and also Emeritus Professor of Neonatal Paediatrics, Ethics & Perinatology at University College London, presented evidence to parliamentarians from the UK showing “that there has been a steady improvement in the chances of survival of babies born at 22 and 23 weeks gestation since the Abortion Act was last amended [in 1990]”.
Right To Life UK spokesperson, Catherine Robinson, said: “Baby Bianca has joined the exclusive ranks of having been cradled by the Princess of Wales. A rare privilege, especially since she was probably younger than the Princess’s own children when they were born”.
