Rationale for the Program
Providing a gift of a strong family bond and successful breastfeeding is the ultimate connection of the heart and science of caring for perinatal nursing. The rationale for the Giving Intimate Family Time (G.I.F.T.) evidence based practice (EBP) project is to positively impact the connection between a newborn and his/her family.  This connection has proven to improve maternal-infant attachment, maternal competence, and exclusive breastfeeding at hospital discharge. The aim of this project is to provide an educational program and enhanced clinical support for perinatal nurses in order to alter the current nursing practice from swaddling newborn infants to providing skin-to-skin contact between the mother and infant during the immediate postpartum period.
Synthesis of the Evidence
Synthesis of the evidence supports skin-to-skin contact between mothers and newborns to have a positive impact on exclusive breastfeeding success and enhanced maternal-infant attachment behaviors.  Skin-to-skin contact is a safe technique without short or long-term negative effects. 
 Application to Practice
This multi-facility project focuses on nursing care during the immediate postpartum period, provided to the first-time mother of a healthy, term infant, delivered vaginally. The Iowa model of Evidence Based Practice to Promote Quality Care was selected to guide the development of this project.  A nursing educational program provides the evidence supporting this change in practice.  Following the education there will be enhanced clinical support provided on the units by chosen G.I.F.T. champions. Prior to the intervention a retrospective chart audit of one-hundred charts per facility was conducted to provide baseline data.  Following the intervention one-hundred charts will be reviewed on patient delivered post intervention. The data will be collected and analyzed utilizing comparative statistics, correlations, and student t tests.
Results
It is anticipated that this EBP project will improve family attachment behaviors and patient (family) satisfaction with their birthing experience.  A secondary benefit of the project will be improved exclusive breastfeeding rates at hospital discharge. 
Conclusion
The goal of the G.I.F.T. EBP project is to change the current perinatal nursing practice from the nurse presenting the newborn to the family as a neatly swaddled bundle, to the nurse routinely facilitating skin-to-skin contact between mother and newborn.  This modification in practice will provide the family with a unique, time-sensitive gift that only a perinatal nurse can provide.