Labor & Delivery/Pediatric Bands - Mother/Father/Baby
A baby’s entry into the world is a joyous event. Handwritten and embossed-label
wristbands can be dangerous when used on babies because the print area is so small and hard to read. St. John helps hospitals keep babies safe with specialized wristbands that keep babies properly and easily identified. Barcoding baby bands has, until now, been a challenge due to the small size of the bands and the small circumference of the baby’s ankles and wrists. |
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| Our unique bands offer additional space for printing barcodes and human-readable information while maintaining comfort and skin integrity for the babies. Keeping babies safe also requires attention to the policies and procedures you have in place. Recommendations from industry groups and hospitals that have found successful practices for proper patient ID in the well-baby and special care nurseries are available on PatientIDExpert.com. |
Reducing mix-ups – Mother-child bands are best when they include unique identifiers that link parents with their children. Pre-printed or system-generated unique numbers help staff match babies to their parents and family members.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children suggests as essential the implementation of policies that proactively prevent mom-baby mix-ups. In their published Healthcare Professionals’ version of Guidelines on Prevention of and Response to Infant Abductions, measure 3-2-2 states, “Immediately after the birth of the infant and before the mother and infant are separated, attach identically numbered ID bands to both the infant (2 bands) and mother (1 band) and 1 band to the father or mother’s significant other when appropriate.”
Maintaining skin integrity – Newborns, and especially premature babies, have delicate skin that can be easily compromised by rigid, hard or otherwise abrasive materials. St. John’s SoftBand™ is your assurance that putting the band directly on the babies will not cause irritation, infection or skin degradation. A study published in the journal, Pediatrics, documents the risk associated with patient misidentification in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The findings showed that wristbands were not present on 20%-80% of NICU patients. Rather, they were affixed to the patients’ beds or medical record, in part due to the fragility of the babies’ skin, which is more prone to skin lacerations and erosions often associated with plastic-coated identification bands.
Ensuring safety – In order to make plastics feel soft and flexible, some plastics contain phthalates that are known to be hazardous in some applications. Hospitals in Europe have implemented extensive plans to eliminate phthalates from their facilities due to the potential health-risks that can arise from exposure to phthalates. St. John’s SoftBand™ is made of a printable fabric – it’s almost like wearing clothes! – and contains no phthalates, latex or other dangerous substances.
Criteria to consider – When evaluating products for your smallest patients, consider the following:
• Comfort for moms and babies – make sure
sensitive skin is protected from irritation.
• Proper sizing of the band – find a product that
can fit even the smallest wrist or ankle.
• Durability – look for a product that has excellent
print retention to ensure ongoing scanability.
• Print area – make sure there’s enough room to
print all of the information you want and need.
• Scanability – look for a wristband that provides
ample space for printing and easy access for
scanning barcodes.
• NICU-compatible – check to see if the bands
used in your well-baby nursery are appropriate for use
on premature babies. If not, how well will you be able to
identify those newborns?
• Latex Free |
