Hi, I work as a nurse in OB and I think the main reason we bath babies now is because of universal precautions. The guideline s is that if it is warm and wet and not yours, wear gloves to protect yourself. Nurses will not handle a baby without gloves until he has had his bath. And we do not really scrub-just a quick sponge bath. Actually I would like to know if this is really necessary or just done because we have always done it. Any infectious disease specialists out there? My own babies were spared even this because I took them home two hours after birth and they never saw the inside of the nursery! Jane