We have been discussing this issue at our hospital also. It is one of our topics for our breastfeeding task force.  Yes part of the problem is moms want their baby in the nursery at night, but many mothers would prefer to have their baby with them but they are under the impression babies are supposed to be in the nursery at night. I tend to talk with the parents and ask how the night went and if they had baby with them.  If they say nursery then I ask details, like whose idea was it, how long was baby there, did baby come back for feedings, ect.  Of course I don't grill them on it!  I fit the questions into the conversation.  Many times the mom states baby was in the nursery 4-7 hours and they comment that they were expecting baby sooner and they wondered when baby was going to come back.  It really surprises me when I tell mom she can ask for her baby or go to the nursery to get her baby and they say, "I did not know I could do that".  I actually get this comment a lot.  I try to explain to parents and staff that baby is not what is making mom tired and taking away the baby makes the problem worse and really sets mom up for some difficult first nights home.  If mom is too tired to take care of her baby at night then we need to see what is causing the problem (i.e.  an hour long professional photo shoot that day (a HUGE pet peeve of mine), too many visitors, ect..

I find it ironic that every patient report has the "rooming-in" box checked, yet most babies spend a lot of time in the nursery.  I think one of the things we need to do is revisit the true meaning of rooming-in and if mom plans to have her baby in the nursery then we should not check that box--it is misleading.  If you were to do a study (using patient records) at our hospital you would find that 100% of our patients room-in!!

I hope this doesn't sound too sarcastic, but this whole idea that mom and dad are too tired to take care of baby at night makes me chuckle because under most circumstances a new mom and dad have way more energy at their most tired than I have when I am at my best, and to think two perfectly healthy (and in most cases very young) adults can't care for their own baby at night makes no sense to me!

Our nursery commitee has made new crib cards with our hospital logo.  They look very nice.  They liked the idea of the crib cards that have the 5 steps for successful breastfeeding on the back, so they put these on our new cards.  All moms breast or formula will have the same cards. I like the first 2 steps because they are written for both breast and formula feeding moms and they state baby should be placed skin-to-skin after birth and #2 is baby should stay in the room during the entire hospital stay.  We are trying to encourage moms that they need to do skin-to-skin and keep baby with them regardless of the feeding method.  At least it is a start, anyway!

Christine Lichte, BS, IBCLC

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