Newborn Falls in Pennsylvania

Abstract

Despite increasing recognition of the potential risks associated with in-hospital newborn falls among health professionals, new parents are frequently unaware of the possibility of dropping their newborn, especially in the hospital. Although most newborn falls do not result in lasting harm to the newborn, they may necessitate additional health care services and cause stress to all involved parties. An analysis of reports submitted to the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System (PA-PSRS) from January 2014 through December 2018 identified 318 events specifically related to newborn falls in the hospital following birth. An increase in the number and rate of serious newborn fall events reported to PA-PSRS was observed compared with a previous analysis by Wallace. Newborn falls were most commonly associated with a caregiver falling asleep (168 events, or 52.8%) and with newborn feeding (72 events, or 22.6%). Strategies to prevent newborn falls in the hospital include focusing efforts on providing support for exhausted parents during the critical time following the birth, offering periods of rest for new parents whenever they are tired, increasing the frequency of rounding when new mothers are breastfeeding, and promoting a midday break in visiting hours.