Food In The Nicu

Published

Hi there all,

Our hospital is about to embark on a very exciting time. We are getting ready to open a new women's and children's hospital and are going to individual patient rooms for the NICU. Here's the catch...management wants to allow parents to have food in the rooms. All the nurses do not. So the question is...What do you do? Do you allow food in your NICU? Please let me know if you have an open style unit or a single patient room unit. THanks so much!!!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Neonatal ICU (Cardiothoracic).

No food in or around the patient care areas.

We have a ADC 72, pod-style unit

Up Vote Up Vote ×

No food in our unit either. I thought there were JCHAO regulations against it.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU, PICU, educator.

We let them have water/soda in the room, no hot beverages. If the mom is diabetic she is allowed to keep snacks with her.

They may let you have food in the room since most peds floors, including PICU's have food in the rooms for patients and family. Do they plan on having somewhere for the family to store their food? How does your PICU handle it? I would think you would have to set limits on it, something along the lines of keep it clean or you won't be able to bring anything in anymore. That is a rough thing. We have pods with 6 babies each. I know that there would be absolutely NO food in isolation rooms!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU, Infection Control.

as a former infection control nurse, imho, this is a bad idea. it's one thing for a diabetic mom to have prepackaged snacks in her purse, and for nursing moms to have water, but food invites bugs. never a good idea. and moms that stayed all day could bring a lunch, but they had to go outside to eat.

we worked out a deal w/the cafeteria for nursing moms that neglected to bring something to eat and couldn't afford our $$ cafeteria--we could send them down w/ a request for nutrition: choice of sandwich, premade salad, juice, fruit, water. the unit and cafeteria split the cost.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU.

No food on the unit, but anyone can have covered drinks--hot or cold.

Sometimes, though, I admit to a pack of m&m's in my pocket and at noc, all bets are off ;).

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU.

No food in the individual patient rooms, but allowed in the family-only lounge (parents and siblings only). It's inside of our unit so they have to be "buzzed in," while the regular lounge is in the hall outside the unit. It's not more than 100 feet from any room, and there's really no reason for someone not to be able to use it. If anything, it's good for them to socialize and walk around once-in-a-while.

The hospital provides a juice dispenser, water/ice dispenser, coffee/tea and little things like peanut butter and crackers. Families can bring whatever they would like to keep, and have faith in the "honor system."

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in PeriOp, ICU, PICU, NICU.

No food in our unit either. There is a small fridge with snacks available in the parenting and breastfeeding rooms only.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU, Telephone Triage.
Hi there all,

Our hospital is about to embark on a very exciting time. We are getting ready to open a new women's and children's hospital and are going to individual patient rooms for the NICU. Here's the catch...management wants to allow parents to have food in the rooms. All the nurses do not. So the question is...What do you do? Do you allow food in your NICU? Please let me know if you have an open style unit or a single patient room unit. THanks so much!!!

I thought it was a JACHO (whatever the initials are) "law" that there is to be no food around any patients. Bad idea, and what a mess too esp. if they left old food around.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Level II & III NICU, Mother-Baby Unit.

No food allowed in our unit either.

I don't know for sure about JCAHO but I have heard that OSHA (Our government's occupational safety and health branch) does not allow food to be in the same area where body fluids and specimens are kept. Supposed to keep people from contracting diseases if the food touches the same counter where an infectious specimen was sitting a few minutes before...

Sigh...

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ob; nicu.

No food in our place either. Parents and visitors may sit in the visiting lounge area. It has a fridge, coffee pot, microwave, tables, vending machines and a television. It's a hop away from the pt. rooms. Our problems arise with smoking. Now, that's a whole other thread!!!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
No food in our place either. Parents and visitors may sit in the visiting lounge area. It has a fridge, coffee pot, microwave, tables, vending machines and a television. It's a hop away from the pt. rooms. Our problems arise with smoking. Now, that's a whole other thread!!!

Our entire hospital is a non smoking campus, people can't smoke anywhere on the property. We tell people if we see them smoking that our facility is completely non smoking. If parents come in and smell like smoke, we make them wear blue cover gowns.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion