Taiwan's Bunny Baby CLP Workshop: A Global Model in Prenatal Diagnosis and Newborn Care

"Bunny Baby Parent Workshop" Celebrates 10 Editions: Taiwan's New Paradigm in Cleft Lip and Palate Prenatal Diagnosis and Postnatal Care

Cross-disciplinary Collaboration for Comprehensive Prenatal Diagnosis, Treatment, and Care of Cleft Lip and Palate

Taiwan is internationally recognized for its top-tier cleft lip and palate (CLP) treatment. However, many are unaware that Taiwan also leads the world in offering prenatal family support courses and dedicated training simulators for CLP.

On June 22, 2025, the 10th Bunny Baby Parent Growth Workshop was held at Dr. Hsiao's OB-GYN Clinic in Yuanlin. This milestone event marks the collaborative efforts of Dr. Kuo-Ting Chen (Taipei Medical University Craniofacial Center) and Dr. Tung-Yao Chang (TaiEr Clinic) in advancing prenatal CLP diagnostics and establishing family-centered support systems. Six expecting couples, all carrying CLP-diagnosed fetuses, participated. Using life-size CLP training models custom-developed by #SurgMate, Dr. Chen and his medical team taught parents how to use assistive devices and feeding techniques to prepare for their babies' arrival.

In late 2017, Dr. Chen transitioned from Chang Gung Memorial Hospital to Taipei Medical University, adhering to the holistic and family-centered medical philosophy of his mentor, Dr. Samuel Noordhoff. At Dr. Chang’s invitation, they jointly established Taiwan’s first Prenatal CLP Joint Clinic, integrating fetal medicine specialists and cleft care experts in a single consultation. Together, they review ultrasounds and address parents' key concerns—diagnosis, treatment options, expected outcomes, and costs. This integrated approach resolved the communication gap between prenatal diagnostic teams and postnatal care teams—a critical issue in CLP management.

Monthly joint clinics revealed a range of emotional and logistical challenges faced by expecting parents. This inspired Dr. Chen to incorporate prenatal education into the Taiwan Cleft Care Network, a nationwide initiative he is dedicated to developing.

However, a new challenge emerged. Despite clear explanations of postnatal treatment plans, some parents still chose to terminate pregnancies days later. The reason? Healthcare providers at maternity or postpartum care centers lacked training to care for CLP newborns, resulting in admissions being denied or referrals to other facilities. As one couple put it:
"If the professionals can’t care for the baby, how can we? Are we making the right decision to keep this child?"

To address this, the team launched the Bunny Baby Parent Growth Workshop, held regularly across northern, central, and southern Taiwan. These sessions provide direct training to parents, delivery hospital staff, and postpartum caregivers on how to properly support CLP newborns.

Nurses Yi-Lin Pan (Taipei Medical University) and Ju-Hsuan Wang (TaiEr Clinic) shared the joy of witnessing parents’ dedication during workshops—some even brought the entire family, including grandparents and siblings. This strong sense of teamwork gives them confidence that these babies will be well-loved and cared for.

Drs. Tzu-Yi Yang and Yen-Ni Chen (TaiEr Clinic) have spent years refining prenatal CLP ultrasound interpretation alongside Dr. Chen. Through repeated comparisons between prenatal imaging and postnatal outcomes, they’ve honed diagnostic precision. Dr. Yang emphasized that the joint clinics and workshops help parents stay calm and resourceful throughout pregnancy and beyond.

Expanding Taiwan’s Holistic CLP Care Model to the World

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the CLP team offered scholarships for medical professionals from vaccine-donating countries to learn Taiwan’s prenatal and postnatal cleft care model. With support from Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Koki Morita from Nagoya, Japan, studied in Taiwan for six months. Upon departure, he was gifted a Bunny Baby CLP simulator and has since launched similar workshops in Japan—bringing this model to a country with advanced healthcare and proving the program’s international potential.

Dr. Chen’s vision for the Taiwan Cleft Care Network is to achieve localized delivery, remote follow-ups, and centralized treatment—reducing unnecessary travel and allowing patients to focus their energy on critical care stages. To fulfill this mission, Dr. Chen has personally visited 176 hospitals and postpartum centers, sometimes within hours of a CLP newborn's birth, to provide training and ensure proper care nationwide.

A recent retrospective analysis of CLP cases from 2018 to 2023 revealed a 97.7% consistency between prenatal diagnoses and postnatal outcomes, which stands at a world-class level. These findings will be presented at the 2025 International Cleft Conference in Kyoto, where Taiwan also hopes to promote the Bunny Baby Parent Workshop model globally.

Now in its 10th edition, the Bunny Baby Workshop has served 70 expecting couples, building a bridge between prenatal diagnostics and postnatal treatment. It represents a new and pioneering model of care that positions Taiwan at the forefront of global cleft care innovation. Dr. Morita has also conducted research on the effectiveness of the Taiwan Cleft Care Network, which will be presented at the same Kyoto conference.

A Global Model Worth Promoting

By successfully integrating prenatal and postnatal teams, the Bunny Baby Parent Workshop demonstrates Taiwan’s leadership in holistic CLP medical care. It is a successful paradigm shift—one worth sharing with the world.

The Taipei Medical University Craniofacial Center, TaiEr Prenatal Cleft Joint Clinic Team, and SurgMate invite the public and healthcare community to learn more about the Bunny Baby Parent Workshop and support its continued development.

Source:
Original article in Chinese published by Uho Health News on July 12, 2025.
Author: Yi-Hsuan Hu
Link: https://www.uho.com.tw/article-67012.html

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