mthuckleberry

With the growing trend toward couplet care and the elimination of a well baby nursery in many facilities, our hospital is trying to solve the issue of having no place to take care of normal newborns when mom is unable to watch and care for her infant because she has had a c section , is sleep deprived, or is spending time in the jacuzzi and there are no family members available to help out. While our NICU used to watch babies when moms needed to rest or were unable, it has grown and is now too busy to be able to do this. And since we are not a large city hospital (population of approx 20,000 surrounded by more rural communities), our census and available nursing staff fluctuates greatly. We have at times brought babies out to the nursing station to be "watched" by whatever staff are available, but have found that this is not always ideal. And of course, sometimes there is simply no one freed up to sit with an infant. So.... we are wondering how other facilities have solved this problem?? Do you have a separate place to take infants and a plan for staffing on a changing needs basis. ~~thanks~~