Moms Talk: Huntington Hospital 'Baby-Viewing' Windows Closed

On our way to a visit a newborn at Huntington Hospital last week, my oldest daughter Maeve and I talked about how excited we were to see "all the babies"

By "all" we were referring the beloved (to us, anyway) custom of looking at the infants en masse through the windows that overlook the nursery in the hospital's maternity ward on the second floor. The babies are identifiable by the placard stating their gender and last name in the clear bassinets.

We were shocked to find out that Huntington Hospital recently stopped doing this and asked why.

One employee told us she thought the decision was made over privacy concerns. Another told us it was because the hospital encourages a 'rooming-in' policy, whereas the baby is with the mom on demand, whether guests are in the hospital room or not. Guests ages 12 and above are allowed from 1 to 8 p.m. and no children except siblings are permitted in the rooms.

I am waiting for hospital spokesperson Theresa Jacobellis to let me know when the decision was made and why. She is actively working on it. In the meantime, what do you think?

Some hospitals, such as Bethesda North in Ohio and Ephrata Community Hospital in Pennsylvania have both rooming in, open visiting hours and all pertinent baby information and photos on its so-called web nursery.

Do you agree with rooming in? Strict visiting policies? Do you wish they still had the nursery viewing windows open in the maternity ward?

Let us know in the comments section below this article.