Sparrow Hospital had a baby boom in 2016, setting a new record with 4,420 births.
With well over a quarter-million baby deliveries to our credit, Sparrow is the premier birthing hospital in mid-Michigan, so having a large number of births isn’t unusual.
But Sparrow has never had a year like 2016. Sparrow had 4,271 births in 2015 and, in recent years, has been averaging just over 4,000.
“We are so grateful that so many expectant parents came to Sparrow for one of the most important events of their lives,” said Kathy Marble, MSN, RNI-NIC, Director, Women and Children’s Services. “We love babies at Sparrow and we had plenty of them to love in 2016.”
One reason so many people may come to Sparrow is that the hospital is a quality leader in innovative birthing practices, such as skin-to-skin contact between mother and infant for at least 30 minutes during the first hour of life, and providing an opportunity to breastfeed within the first two hours of life.
In 2015, Sparrow was designated mid-Michigan’s only Baby Friendly® Hospital, a national benchmark in quality care for mothers and babies that promotes best practices in infant feeding and mother-baby bonding.
Sparrow surpasses most hospitals in Michigan and nationwide in quality measures for areas such as ensuring elective deliveries are done for a medical reason and low healthcare-associated bloodstream infections in newborns.
“As a Baby Friendly Hospital, Sparrow provides and supports skin-to-skin, rooming in (in which mothers room with their babies), breastfeeding, and helping to ensure babies receive the best available support,” Marble said. “We take seriously Sparrow’s mission to improve the health of the people in our communities by providing quality, compassionate care to everyone, every time, every delivery…and every mother-baby.”
Sparrow’s Mother Baby Center and other OB services will be the beneficiary of the 2017 Sparrow Gala on Feb. 25 at the University Club of MSU. For tickets and more information, go to SparrowFoundation.org/Gala.
SOURCE: PRESS RELEASE
