Care of the Newborn at Birth

Newborn Identification and

Registration

• It is important to avoid the babies

being handed to the wrong parents
• Also to avoid kidnapping of babies
Identification Band
• It is a plastic bracelet with
permanent locks that require cutting
to be removed
• It has the same number as the
mother’s hospital number, the
mother’s full name, date & time of
infant’s birth
• 2 bands should always be used
Birth Registration
• The physician or nurse-midwife who
delivered the infant must be certain
that a birth registration is filed to the
corresponding agency where the
infant was born
• It contains the correct infant’s name,
mother’s name, father’s name,
birthdate and place of birth.
Footprinting
• It should be taken with care because
it will be part of the child’s
permanent record
Birth Record Documentation
• Be certain that the birth record lists
the ff:
– Time of birth
– Time the infant breathed
– Whether respiration is spontaneous or
aided
– Apgar score at 1 and 5 minutes of life
– Whether eye prophylaxis was given
– Whether vitamin K was administered
Birth Record Documentation
– General condition of the infant
– Number of vessels in the umbilical cord
– Whether cultures were taken
– Whether the infant voided and passed
a stool
 Apgar Scale
Sign 0 1 2

Heart rate Absent Slow (<100) >100

Respiratory effort Absent Slow, irregular, Good, strong cry

weak cry
Muscle tone Flaccid Some flexion of Well flexed
extremities
Reflex Irritability:
Response to No response Grimace Cough or sneeze
catheter in nostril
lap to sole of foot No response Grimace Cry and withdrawal
of foot
Color Blue, pale Body normal Normal skin
pigment, coloring
extremities blue
Initial Feeding
• May give breastfeeding immediately
after birth
• If formula feeding will be done, it
would be after 2-4 hours after birth
• Fed as often as every 2 hours
Metabolic Screening Test
• Every infant must be screened for
phenylketonuria (a disease of
defective protein metabolism) and
hyperthyroidism
• This is a simple blood test in which 3
drops of blood from the heel are
dropped onto a special filter paper
• The baby should have received milk
before the test for it to be accurate
Hepatitis B Vaccination
• All newborns received a 1st
vaccination against hepatitis B within
12 hours after birth
• Second dose: 1 month
• Third dose: 6 months
Vitamin K Administration
• Newborns are at risk for bleeding
disorders during the 1st week of life
because their gastrointestinal tract is
sterile at birth and unable to produce
Vitamin K, necessary for blood
coagulation
• Vitamin K stimulates the liver to
produce factors II, VII, IX and X
• A single dose of 0.5 to 1.0 mg of
Vitamin K is administered
intramuscularly within the first hour
of life