Are You still footprinting infants in delivery for identification?

Nurses Safety

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Specializes in Neonatal ICU.

We are footprinting our infants in the delivery for identification in the event of an abduction. We also fingerprint mom. This is sometimes difficult during a section as mom is strapped down and draped. Is this something everybody is doing or are we the last to stop?

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Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

Speaking as a patient and not as a nurse...where I delivered, the footprinting was done more so we'd have a memento and not really for ID reasons. I was never fingerprinted.

As far as security went, he was roomed in with me so it was rare he left my side. Also, they put the Baby LoJack on my son's ankle as soon as he was cleaned up, so he could be traced when he did have to leave me for tests, etc.

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, PACU.

We quit doing that over 20 years ago. The baby's footprint will be different even a few hours after delivery, there aren't really any identifiying whorls or marks, they actually all kind of look the same on the first day of life. We use a HUGs band for security.

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