While the Princess of Wales has not yet returned to public duties following her surgery, she has reportedly been working from home. The Telegraph reported on March 21 that Catherine has been working “on her early years project to improve the lives of babies, as she eases back into normal life after her abdominal surgery.”
The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, which Her Royal Highness launched in 2021, shared on Thursday the “overwhelmingly positive” evaluation results for the trial of an observational tool.
The Alarm Distress Baby Scale (ADBB) tool “focuses on a baby’s social behaviours such as eye contact, facial expression, vocalisation, and activity levels to help practitioners and families better understand the ways babies express their feelings.”
The trial, funded by The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, “aimed to explore the feasibility of implementing the tool within routine health visiting practice in the UK to promote infant wellbeing, the social and emotional development of babies, and parent- infant relationships,” according to the center.
In light of the trial’s findings, a second phase of research has been recommended. In a statement, Christian Guy, executive director of the Centre for Early Childhood, said: “The quality of the relationships between babies and their parents or carers, during the first weeks and months of life, shapes their developing brains and lays the foundations for their future health and wellbeing. So, it is vital that we provide families with the best possible advice and support at this crucial time.”
Christian added, “The results of the initial phase of testing are so encouraging. We now want to move quickly to ensure we build on this work, bringing the benefits of this model to more health visitors across the country so that, ultimately, more babies and their families get the support they need to thrive.”
Per The Telegraph, Kensington Palace confirmed that the Princess of Wales, who has been recovering from abdominal surgery since January, “had been kept up to date with her campaign and the ‘overwhelmingly positive’ results of a study she inspired.”
