On April 13th we organized the symposium Beginnersgeluk. After more than a year of preparation it was time for our live (!) Symposium Beginnersgeluk – een goede start voor kind en ouder. We organized this day full of interesting lectures about the first 1000 days in collaboration with VSV Samen Nijmegen.

A good start
Gynaecologist Martine Hollander started the day with a very interesting lecture on traumatic birth experiences. According to her research, one in 7 to 10 women experience their delivery as traumatic. An alarmingly number, which deserves extra attention and research!

Parallel sessions
After the first keynote, it was time for the parallel sessions. We highlight a few of them here. Sandra Solleveld talked about Babythuiszorg, an exciting new program that offers extra support to vulnerable families in the first year after birth. Roseriet Beijers talked about the components of breast milk, Manon Krol about her research on the early signs of autism, and Nicole Rheinheimer about the effects of skin-to-skin contact. Marjolein Kleij (Pharos) highlighted a different perspective: what about the father? Her interactive lecture was about the importance of fathers in the first 1000 days and how the majority of fathers would like to spend more time with their children.

Redesigning (birth) care
Professor Ank de Jonge ended the day with her lecture about (birth) care. She showed us how important it is that families feel safe in the hands of care providers and trust that they will receive the care that they need. How can we provide, organize and fund care with the important view on time and trust?

Thank you!
We would like to thank all speakers and participants for their contribution and enthusiasm to this wonderful day!