Rooming In: The Newest Birthing Controversy

Hot on the heels of media stories about the importance of screening for post-partum depression, a debate about whether to have newborns stay in hospital rooms with their moms vs. providing nursery care for the infants is emerging. It’s an interesting topic, but binary responses to the debate do little to recognize that “one size fits all” solutions may not be sound.
The benefits of rooming in instead of providing nursery care are well known. Both research-based and anecdotal reports suggest that rooming in correlates to a lower incidence of post-partum depression in new mothers and reduced breastfeeding problems for both mother and baby. Babies also appear to be less subject to jaundice. It has also been observed that rooming-in babies seem more content and cry less while mothers bond better with their babies and feel more competent in caring for them when they return home. Proponents argue as well that rooming in offering mothers more rest time because they are not anxious about what’s going on in the nursery.
Others argue vehemently that rooming in is anything but restful. In a recent Boston Globe article one mom said it made her angry that she did not have a choice about whether to have rooming in or  nursery support. Another woman said that not having a nursery “threw [her] for a loop. Mothers need to recover from the trauma of delivery and if they can’t do it at the hospital where is that supposed to happen?”
It’s a particularly relevant question for mo...

Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care - March 25, 2016 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: dw at disruptivewomen.net Tags: Childbirth Patients' Rights Policy Women's Health Source Type: blogs