I think we can all agree that most mothers are innately selfless. Prior to motherhood, many will take pride in their ability to care for themselves from a physical, mental and emotional aspect, but once they have a baby of their own, mothers experience a whole new level of love and self-sacrifice.
If you are currently expecting a bundle of joy, you might be experiencing a whole spectrum of emotions—especially love, towards the baby that is growing inside you. And once your baby is born, this love grows into something bigger and stronger, where you would do everything within your ability to protect and nurture this precious child in your life.
9 Months of Preparing, A Lifetime of Love
From the moment your doctor confirms that yes, you indeed are pregnant—your whole worldview changes. You change your diet to make sure your baby is getting the very best nutrients, you stop doing strenuous activities and you start making an ever expanding to-do list of the things you need to buy, do and read before your bundle of joy arrives!
However, as you go through the usual list of diapers, strollers, bottles, and toiletries—it is often easy to overlook certain safety and protection must-do’s as you prepare for the arrival of your baby. But don’t fret, we’ve got your back with these top four things to ensure that your child is well protected.
1. Buy and install a car seat
This will probably be one of the most important items that you can buy for your child. It’s important to do your research and survey the best type of car seat that will suit your needs and your car—don’t wait until the last few weeks before purchasing and installing the car seat. Preparing early will ensure that you end up with the very best choice that fits your budget and lifestyle. Car seats are crucial in ensuring that your child is well protected as you embark on many car adventures together!
2. Make your home baby safe
Getting your home ready for the arrival of your baby is more than just painting the nursery and fixing up the latest crib. Baby proofing is an important aspect of ensuring your child’s safety, too! Many may think “Well, I still have time before the baby starts to crawl and walk” but it’s always best to prepare ahead—they’ll be reaching for that glass jar before you know it! Here is a general checklist of things to do to baby-proof your home:
– Keep all chemicals stored away (have safety locks installed)
– Update lighting system (automatic switch-on night lights are recommended)
– Lock all drawers and keep medicines beyond reach
– Anchor all furniture
– Install window guards
3. Keep the air clean with an air purifier
Everyone wants to give their child the best environment to grow in and what better way to achieve that than by ensuring access to clean and bacteria-free air? Investing in an air purifier for your child will give you the peace of mind that they are breathing the cleanest air possible. However, do check that the air purifier is baby safe and is not an ozone air purifier as it can irritate the eyes and skin. Get one that is fitted with a high-performance HEPA filter instead.
4. Protecting your child and you at every stage of life
As they say, the only certain thing in life is uncertainty and it’s completely normal for every mother to want everything to go smoothly in their pregnancy journey. Which is why it makes perfect sense for you to invest in a protection plan that will protect you and your baby from the early stages of pregnancy to birth, childhood and beyond.
Understanding the concerns of every expecting mother, AIA Malaysia has stepped up to play an active role in supporting and protecting families every step of the way through its Total Health Solution. The ecosystem focuses on empowering Malaysians to live well through AIA’s unique health programme, AIA Vitality, protect well with comprehensive and innovative product solutions, and get well with differentiated healthcare services that provide support from diagnosis to recovery.
Comprehensive Protection for those Critical Childhood Years
AIA’s latest offering—A-Life Joy Xtra is a comprehensive protection and savings plan for your child. It is a flexible and all-in-one plan, offering features and benefits that meet the growing protection needs of your child. Fitted with the company’s exclusive Total Health Solution ecosystem, this new solution gives parents like you a peace of mind knowing that your child will have access to quality healthcare and protection during those all-important developmental years. You are also able to allocate some money in this plan to build an education savings fund for your child.
It is the first in the market that reimburses you for the cost of medical treatment and hospital related charges in the first crucial 30 days from birth. If your baby is admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), Intensive Care Unit (ICU) or High Dependency Unit (HDU), you can be assured that A-Life Joy Xtra has got you covered. Additionally, it protects children against congenital conditions, neonatal jaundice and child developmental disorders, as well as expecting mothers against pregnancy-related complications.
Another unique feature in the plan worth mentioning is AIA’s Vitality Joy Wallet—which allows parents to unlock greater protection and benefits for their children when they join AIA Vitality and make healthy choices in their everyday lives. By just staying healthy, parents will earn benefits in the Vitality Joy Wallet which can be utilised for their children’s vaccination, dental, optical, and hearing care expenses. As they say, healthy parents, happy children!
For parents who prefer shariah-compliant solutions, AIA also offers a takaful option called A-Life Ikhtiar Child Solution that has similar features and benefits as A-Life Joy Xtra.
What’s more, as an AIA customer, you’ll get to enjoy special privileges and offers on a range of services offered by their healthcare partners, such as:
• Up to RM 1,200 savings for maternity or delivery packages
• Up to 15% off for child vaccinations such as BCG, chickenpox and pneumococcal
• Up to 35% off for post-natal home visit by a nurse or physiotherapist
Additional assurance against COVID-19 for a vulnerable population
As the battle with COVID-19 continues, expecting mothers and children in Malaysia remains a vulnerable population with over 320,000 infants and children having contracted the virus since the start of the pandemic. Against this backdrop, AIA is offering a Free COVID-19 Hospital Income Cover to children age 17 and below as well as expecting mothers. They will receive up to RM150 per day for a maximum of 14 days if they are diagnosed with COVID-19 and require hospitalisation. Those who are interested may click on this link to register. No purchase of any AIA plans is needed to enjoy this free cover.
End to End Support for You and Your Child
The new plans, special offers and Free COVID-19 Hospital Income Cover are all a part of AIA’s recently launched ‘Anakku Sihat, Negaraku Hebat’ campaign that aims to support parents in raising healthy and happy children. The campaign features a series of exciting initiatives, offers and activities—including antenatal classes with us at Motherhood!
From now until the end of November 2021, all expecting mothers are invited to join our virtual antenatal classes as experts talk about nutrition, sleep, exercise, and mental health—all for free! Don’t miss out and register here today! We look forward to seeing you there!