The first hour after your baby’s birth is known as the “Golden Hour.” During this important time, we encourage healthy newborns to spend time skin-to-skin on their parent’s chest. The diapered baby is placed directly on the parent’s skin, and both are covered with a warm blanket. This contact encourages bonding, improves your baby’s immune system, and regulates his or her temperature after birth. If you’re breastfeeding, it also improves your baby’s ability to latch for the initial feeding.
Although your baby can return to the nursery at any time, we suggest moms of newborns spend 23 hours per day with their baby in their room, when possible. As long as there are no health concerns preventing it, the practice of rooming in with your baby will help you get to know your little one and provide you with a sense of their feeding cues.
In the event that you feel sleepy and need to rest, we want to ensure that the baby is safely placed in the bassinet next to your bed. Co-sleeping, or the practice of having the baby sleep in your bed with you, is not safe and could lead them to roll and/or fall out of the bed. Following safe sleep guidelines supports safety for both mom and baby.
The Mom & Baby Guide will provide you with all you need to know, learn and do in the first hours and weeks of life with your new baby.
Download the Mom & Baby Guide.
The following resources are intended to help reduce the risk of sleep-related infant deaths by providing education and awareness of the recommendations for a safe sleep environment. Make sure your little one has the best start in life with an established bedtime routine that focuses on their wellness and preventative measures that keep them protected.
Please visit How to Keep Your Sleeping Baby Safe: AAP Policy Explained to get the latest information regarding the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Safe Sleep guidelines.
New York State Department of Health Safe Sleep Anatomical Diagram
The ABC’s of Safe Sleep Brochure
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