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The Women’s and Infants Service line was next in line to implement the Relationship Based Care Model as our practice model at Spectrum Health.  In learning more about the model, the attachment theory and skin to skin care seemed like a perfect fit for the RBC behaviors in our specialty.  Just as in other large teaching hospitals, we often hear the phrase, “but we’ve always done it this way.”  Many staff nurses in L&D heard the evidence but then said “That is not what I have seen in my practice” or basically just didn’t believe the research that skin to skin care in the immediate postpartum period would stabilize the infant better than the radiant warmer.  We also heard comments that “the patients don’t want to hold their babies” or “how will we ever get our assessments done?” 

The presentation will cover how we developed coaches among the staff and provided them with additional education regarding the theories and evidence.  These coaches modeled and supported skin to skin care during our go-live period.  They also collected the success stories and shared them with their peers in a formalized process.  I will also share a few stories/case studies with the audience.  These stories were the critical element in our success.  Data collected regarding initiation rates will be shared as well.