Whats the point of having Hospital Maternity Units and NICUS be secure places

[gentlebirthmothr]

When the mother is on another unit and baby is on the maternity or nicu. When the baby needs a blood test. When something with the security is being fixed and they shut off and no one can come and go since everything is locked as well.

Thats happen while I was volunteering, today. Personally, I think its so stupid rule.

Think thats it.

Thank you.

[angington]

So no one walks off with your baby.

[TeaghansMama]

I'm not sure I'm following you? Are you asking why maternity wards and NICUs are secure places because sometimes they shut off the security system for repairs and lock the units down? So they just should never be secure places because once in a blue moon they lock them down and shut off the security system?
I work in a large trauma center with an excellent NICU and maternity center. I gave birth there and was very impressed with the measures they took to insure our safety. I have no idea why anyone would ever think, in this day and age, why a security system to protect infants and mothers would be a negative thing....???!!!

[Jilian]

Like the other people have mentioned, the security is to protect the babies. In the past there have been cases of babies being stolen from hospitals, so now all hospitals are more secure to prevent that. I imagine that the NICU is more secure because the babies in there are so fragile, the hospital probably wants to make sure that not just any person can walk in and bring their germs in around these already fragile babies.

[gentlebirthmothr]

angington, teaghansmom, Jilian,

Thank you for your responses and now I see why they need to be secure.

[Brinda]

I never really understood the whole keeping the nursery/NICU on a seperate floor from mom thing. Then you have some nurse wanting to take the baby in the elevator for transport. I was always nervous about that, you know. My kids ended up in the NICU anyway, so I never had the baby in my room.

[KayasMama04]

We had dd at a military hospital and the tag around her foot if it went pas the doors an alarm would go off and the base gates would be closed till the baby was found. I felt really secure about having dd there, also there was a word of the day so if a nurse needed your baby she would have to tell you the word. I really liked it a great sense of security.

[ambersky]

Originally Posted by KayasMama04

We had dd at a military hospital and the tag around her foot if it went pas the doors an alarm would go off and the base gates would be closed till the baby was found. I felt really secure about having dd there, also there was a word of the day so if a nurse needed your baby she would have to tell you the word. I really liked it a great sense of security.

I had my baby at the same hospital. My son never went anywhere without my dh or I though.

[happyblessedmama]

my two healthy babies were never in the nursery. My 3rd spent almost 2 weeks in a NICU and the NICU was self contained. They even did surgery in there. It was a secure environment. What's the point? It's obvious, right? So nobody takes the baby away.

At the hospital I was at with her, the NICU was right by the postpartum recovery ward. The NICU babies are much more fragile healthwise and often can't be with the parents continuously (that's the point, right? They are actually in need of real medical care). Of course I'm sad I couldn't be WITH her all the time, but she needed medical care. At the end of her stay I was offered a parent room in the NICU I moved into for 5-6 days so I could nurse on demand. She still needed monitoring so I could not do that for her, but they woudl call me and have me come nurse whenever I was supposed to.

[EmmaJean]

christine, that's wonderful your hospital was so supportive and encouraging of breastfeeding.