Keeping the baby with the mother, in the cot is called

NHM UP Staff Nurse-2021 Shift-2nd

Obstetrics and Midwifery Nursing

Easy

Appeared in: NHM UP Staff Nurse-2021 Shift-2nd

Explanation

Rooming-in is the standard hospital practice of keeping a newborn's cot or bassinet at the mother's bedside.
This arrangement allows the mother and infant to stay together continuously, 24 hours a day.
The primary goals are to facilitate mother-infant bonding, promote successful breastfeeding on demand, and build maternal confidence in infant care.
It is a key step (Step 7) in the WHO's Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI).

Option A: This is a general, non-specific term for providing support and supervision. It does not describe the specific hospital practice of keeping the mother and baby together.
Option B: Kangaroo care specifically involves placing the naked infant in direct skin-to-skin contact on the parent's chest. The question describes the baby being in a cot, not in skin-to-skin contact.
Option D: This is a broad medical specialty that refers to the overall care of newborn infants, particularly those who are ill or premature. It is not specific to the baby's physical location relative to the mother.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Postnatal care practices and mother-infant bonding as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Rooming-in is a fundamental nursing intervention that empowers mothers, improves breastfeeding outcomes, and reduces the incidence of postpartum depression.
Nurses are responsible for educating parents on the benefits of rooming-in, ensuring safety (e.g., safe sleep practices), and providing hands-on support for infant care at the bedside.
What if? If the newborn is premature or requires intensive medical monitoring (e.g., for respiratory distress), the baby would be admitted to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). In this case, rooming-in would not be immediately possible, and care would focus on stabilization, with Kangaroo Mother Care often introduced once the baby is stable.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the key elements in the question: 'keeping the baby', 'with the mother', and 'in the cot'. This describes a specific physical arrangement.
Next, evaluate the given options to find the most precise term for this arrangement.
Eliminate overly broad terms. 'Caring' is a general action, and 'Neonatal care' is a wide field of medicine.
Differentiate between the two specific practices. 'Kangaroo care' involves skin-to-skin contact, which is not mentioned. 'Rooming in' describes keeping the baby's cot in the mother's room.
Conclude that 'Rooming in' is the exact term for the practice described in the question.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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E6 Midwifery Obstetrics and Gynecology Nursing Sandeep Kaur p. 18-26

E6 Parks TextBook of Preventive & Social Medicine part 2 — Subpart A (pp 1-232 of 464) p. 33-35

E6 Ghai Essential Pediatrics(pp 26-904 of 913) p. 147-149