Health News
Since 1989, U.S. hospitals have worked closely with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to implement measures designed to prevent infant abduction, such as the case of Carlina White. Over the last two decades, the number of in-hospital infant abductions has declined due to these preventative efforts.
Sadly, abductors have increasingly targeted homes, shopping centers and other public areas. Between 1983 through 2010, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reports an annual average of 9 to 10 documented infant abductions and that 95% of these abducted infants were located and safely returned to their parents ? usually within a few days to two weeks. While this is good news, nonetheless it is important for hospital staff and parents to work together to achieve the goal of making this a never event.
What can parents do to prevent an abduction from occurring? Here are some tips that Sharon M. Rossi, R.N.C., M.S., director of Women?s and Children?s Services at Sinai Hospital, says every parent needs to know and follow. Rossi was on Good Morning Maryland @ 9
on ABC last week.
In the hospital:
- Time On The Tummy Is Important For Infants' Muscle Development
Today's infants are spending too much time on their backs or in sitting devices, which is causing an increase in head and neck deformities and slowing down their motor development, Susan Effgen, a physical therapy professor at the University of Kentucky,...
- Kentucky Doctor Honored For Her Work In Bolstering Health And Preventing Deaths Of Babies Born A Few Weeks Early
A Kentucky neonatalogist was honored this week for giving the state "a role in catalyzing a national movement around healthier babies." Ruth Ann Shepherd, M.D., division director for maternal and child health in the Kentucky Department for Public Health,...
- What It's Like To Take Childbirth Classes At Sinai
Ed. Note: We asked one of the Birthplace at Sinai's mothers-to-be to discuss what it's like to take childbirth classes. She'll be blogging periodically on her experiences as a new mother. I?m expecting a baby, but I don?t know what to expect....
- A Safe Haven For Mothers
The Safe Haven law in Maryland, passed in 2002, allows mothers to leave newborn babies at a hospital, fire or police station without being prosecuted and with no questions asked. That means Sinai and Northwest hospitals are safe havens. The purpose of...
- Sinai Works With Parents To Prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome
Your newborn won?t stop crying. What is your plan? That?s the conversation many nurses at Sinai Hospital are increasingly having with post-partum mothers, and their partners, before the baby goes home. The goal is to reduce the incidence of Shaken Baby...
Health News
Keeping Your Infant Safe
Since 1989, U.S. hospitals have worked closely with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to implement measures designed to prevent infant abduction, such as the case of Carlina White. Over the last two decades, the number of in-hospital infant abductions has declined due to these preventative efforts.
Sadly, abductors have increasingly targeted homes, shopping centers and other public areas. Between 1983 through 2010, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reports an annual average of 9 to 10 documented infant abductions and that 95% of these abducted infants were located and safely returned to their parents ? usually within a few days to two weeks. While this is good news, nonetheless it is important for hospital staff and parents to work together to achieve the goal of making this a never event.
What can parents do to prevent an abduction from occurring? Here are some tips that Sharon M. Rossi, R.N.C., M.S., director of Women?s and Children?s Services at Sinai Hospital, says every parent needs to know and follow. Rossi was on Good Morning Maryland @ 9
on ABC last week.
In the hospital:
- Only allow staff wearing a picture hospital ID badge to handle your baby.
- When resting or sleeping, place the baby bassinet next to your bed on the window side so it is away from the doorway.
- When you plan to shower or sleep, discuss supervision of your baby with your nurse.
- Call a nurse at any time if you have questions or feel uncomfortable about the behavior of a staff member.
- In public birth announcements, do not include your home address.
- Do not post information about your infant with pictures on social media walls ? only share this with those people you know and trust. Because privacy settings can change with little or no notice, don?t assume that anything you post on social media is private.
- Avoid using outside decorations (wooden storks, balloons, etc.) to announce the arrival of your newborn.
- Verify all home visits with the hospital or home health company or local health department agency before setting up any appointment to be seen in your home.
- Check for visible photo ID before opening your door to any utility worker or general repair person. If unsure, do not open the door and instead verify the employee's identification with the company.
- Always use an approved car seat that is safely buckled in your shopping cart.
- Never leave your infant unattended or turn your attention away from your infant.
- Do not allow a person you do not know to ?keep an eye on your infant.?
- Do not use social media features that tag your location.
- Once your shopping is done, secure your infant in the car, lock the doors and then load your groceries. Keep the keys with you and do not leave your infant in a car that is running.
- Time On The Tummy Is Important For Infants' Muscle Development
Today's infants are spending too much time on their backs or in sitting devices, which is causing an increase in head and neck deformities and slowing down their motor development, Susan Effgen, a physical therapy professor at the University of Kentucky,...
- Kentucky Doctor Honored For Her Work In Bolstering Health And Preventing Deaths Of Babies Born A Few Weeks Early
A Kentucky neonatalogist was honored this week for giving the state "a role in catalyzing a national movement around healthier babies." Ruth Ann Shepherd, M.D., division director for maternal and child health in the Kentucky Department for Public Health,...
- What It's Like To Take Childbirth Classes At Sinai
Ed. Note: We asked one of the Birthplace at Sinai's mothers-to-be to discuss what it's like to take childbirth classes. She'll be blogging periodically on her experiences as a new mother. I?m expecting a baby, but I don?t know what to expect....
- A Safe Haven For Mothers
The Safe Haven law in Maryland, passed in 2002, allows mothers to leave newborn babies at a hospital, fire or police station without being prosecuted and with no questions asked. That means Sinai and Northwest hospitals are safe havens. The purpose of...
- Sinai Works With Parents To Prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome
Your newborn won?t stop crying. What is your plan? That?s the conversation many nurses at Sinai Hospital are increasingly having with post-partum mothers, and their partners, before the baby goes home. The goal is to reduce the incidence of Shaken Baby...