September 2026 FCC Community Exchange

Thank you to the 107 community members who joined us for last week’s open forum-style session facilitated by Mary Coughlin, MS, NNP, NCC-E and Mia Malcolm, CDFT, NICU Parent. So much of what was explored—labels, assumptions, curiosity, power, intention and impact, relational harm, accountability, and repair—really asks for continued reflection beyond the hour we spent together. Mary & Mia have created a Post-Exchange Reflection Guide which we hope you’ll explore. The question that holds the whole piece is the one they ended with: Knowing what I know now, how will I show up differently?

Highlights:

  • Reframe the label. When you catch yourself or a colleague calling a parent difficult, name the underlying strengths or protective intent.

  • Ask what you don’t know. Before reacting to a family’s behavior, treat the visible moment as the tip of the iceberg.

  • Keep the focus on the baby. Redirect staff conversation away from a parent’s conduct and toward the infant’s condition and needs.

  • Examine impact, not intent. Follow escalation with a genuine apology centered on the family’s experience.

  • Interrupt the narrative. Notice when a negative story about a family is spreading and challenge it before it shapes the next encounter.

  • Reflect with the worksheet. Revisit the reflection guide individually or as a team to keep the practice going between sessions.

Heard from Participants:

  • I once heard that “discomfort is the price for living a meaningful life” and sometimes that helps remind me stay close to my purpose, even when it’s hard

  • “If you’re acing it, YOU”RE NOT!” Every day and person are different and their circumstances are different every day and moment!

  • If you are practicing true Family-Centered Care, you treat parents with the same respect you treat your coworkers, because you truly see them as part of the care team.

 

Reflection Guides: