Will Hospital allow a child to go home in an out-dated car seat?

[Unregistered]

A co-worker is going to have a baby next month. Her car seat may be outdated. Will the hospital release the child in this seat? She does NOT want to buy a new one. The main reason is that the one she has includes a strap like a purse for carrying the baby and she finds it so easy. I have one that is NOT outdated that she could use but she refuses. However, she told me that she may be calling me if they won't let her take the child home. Anyone know the hospital rules about this? I know they check the fitting of the child, but do they check the expiration?

[Gypsy]

It depends.

Are there techs who discharge every baby? or do they just send the nurse or hospital staff out and make sure a carseat is present?

I don't think they can legally stop her any way as long as she has a seat, it's a parental decision to use an expired seat.

What seat does she currently have?

[Gypsy]

Would she be willing to use a non-expired seat if she bought one of these?

http://www.babysupermarket.com/baby/product.asp?dept_id=3353&pf_id=PAAAIALANHBNOODB&ad_id=froogle&key_id=FlyingFalconInfantCarSeatCarrier

Another picture of it http://us.st12.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/perfectlysafe_2020_38504341

[codex57]

At the hospital where DS was born, a nurse just checked to see if you had a car seat. They're not trained to tell if the seat fit the baby or not or if it's properly installed. Or expired. Just that you have one. State has a rule that hospitals must ensure the baby has a seat, but hospitals are only required to check if a seat is there. As long as it's there, they'll discharge. Not trained to check seats.

[shellebelle]

Sounds like a Stay in View:

http://www.epinions.com/images/opti/3f/95/Fisher_Price_Stay-in-View_Infant_Car_Seat-resized200.jpg

[kaysmom]

I live in Minnesota and they did not let my cousin take home her 3rd baby in the car seat she had from her first because it was expired. I never thought to ask her if she was required to show them the seat or if it was something someone just noticed... but they ended up buying a new seat that day!!

[codex57]

Nice!

[An Aurora]

It really depends on the hospital. At the hospital here, part of my job is checking the date on the carseat and checking it for recalls. If it's expired, no the baby cannot go home in it.

Aren't the SIV seats good for 8 years? So there is a possibility it's not actually expired.

ETA: We require that the parents bring the seat in with them, and no baby goes home without the carseat being checked for date and recalls, and we also do a fitting with the parents.

[snowbird25ca]

Aren't the SIV seats good for 8 years? So there is a possibility it's not actually expired.


Yep, not all of them are expired yet.

Here they wouldn't prevent a regular parent from going home with an expired seat. I'm 99% sure they wouldn't allow an adoptive parent to take custody of their son or daughter in an expired seat though - they won't allow adoptive parents to take a baby home with a cuddle bag is in use, so I doubt they'd let an expired seat be used...

[GirlFriday]

The hospital DS was born in didn't even look at our carseat, much less come down to the car to see if it was installed. At some point on the day we left they asked if we had one, we said yes and that was it. I was kind of annoyed.

[SamPacey&Joshua]

At the hospital where DS was born, a nurse just checked to see if you had a car seat. They're not trained to tell if the seat fit the baby or not or if it's properly installed. Or expired. Just that you have one. State has a rule that hospitals must ensure the baby has a seat, but hospitals are only required to check if a seat is there. As long as it's there, they'll discharge. Not trained to check seats.

Same here...all they do is make sure you HAVE a carseat.

[ketchupqueen]

My hospital has 3 nurses certified and makes sure one is always on duty for discharges. She checks every seat going out and if it's not appropriate, she can't stop the parents taking the baby in it, but these nurses have been known to call 911 once parents are in the car and report it if they won't listen! (It's hospital policy.)

[Brilliantmama]

I probably could have gone home with Georgie in a laundry basket, they didn't care.

[BW1426]

Our hospital checks.

[Chameleon]

Ours did too.

[christineka]

We brought our first home in a second hand t-shield seat, wearing a puffy bunting suit. I don't know whether the car seat was expired by then or not, but no one checked the manufacture date or told me anything about that kind of stuff. (The seat was discontinued 4 years before dd was born.)

They have never checked doms for any of my kids, but they wouldn't allow me to use the aftermarked headrest for second dd. Instead they gave me a hospital blanket to roll up around her head. The first child had an afterwarket headrest thing, but no one said a word about it.

Both dds were born in the same hospital.

No one checked at the other two.

[Pixels]

Our hospital made us bring the seat in so that they could make sure we had one. The nurse commented that it looked like we had the harness tight enough, but I don't know if all the nurses checked that, or if it was just this one. We already had DD in it by the time the nurse came around to check. She never physically touched any part of the seat, it was strictly eyes only. No checking DOM, certification stickers, or recalls.

[Pepse]

here at my hosiptal in CDN, they checked the expiration sticker, checked for a canada sticker, and made us put her in and tighter her up.

Since the old tech sucks around here, i was shocked lol

but we have a new one now ;)

wondering how that happened :)

Wished it was me though lol

[britfish]

Yep, not all of them are expired yet.

Here they wouldn't prevent a regular parent from going home with an expired seat. I'm 99% sure they wouldn't allow an adoptive parent to take custody of their son or daughter in an expired seat though - they won't allow adoptive parents to take a baby home with a cuddle bag is in use, so I doubt they'd let an expired seat be used...

I don't get it, whats the difference whether adoptive or birth parent??

[ketchupqueen]

I don't get it, whats the difference whether adoptive or birth parent??

I would guess the difference is that the burden of proof is on the adoptive parent to demonstrate they are parenting well and following all laws and regs, per CPS rules, while the natural parent has no such burden but rather a presumption of, well, innocence to continue the metaphor. The presumption in law is that the natural parent is the best person to care for the child unless proven or demonstrated otherwise (whether by an investigation or by voluntary forfieture of parental rights.)

[keri1292]

I don't get it, whats the difference whether adoptive or birth parent??

Same reason adoptive parents have home visits and an approval process and yet biological parents can reproduce without proving themselves fit. :whistle:

[G8r4evr]

The hospital DS was born in didn't even look at our carseat, much less come down to the car to see if it was installed. At some point on the day we left they asked if we had one, we said yes and that was it. I was kind of annoyed.

Same here. All they did was ask if we had one. I would have loved for them to do a fitting with me.

[jewlsvern]

All I had to do was sign a paper saying I had a car seat. An orderly wheeled me down to the car and didn't even look at all. I was not even questioned by a nurse.

[VirginiaDavis]

We had two people come in, that said they were car seat techs and asked if we had a seat, and if it was installed, ect. I said yes, and that it had been installed by a tech, which was true. They said ok, gave me a flyer for a free seat check if I wanted/needed it, told me their recommendations on the straps and left.

No one checked to see if Nathan was in his seat right or anything.

[snowbird25ca]

I don't get it, whats the difference whether adoptive or birth parent??

In a nutshell, you can't take custody of an adoptive child if you're putting them in danger. Expired seats, and aftermarket products fall into the danger category, so they don't allow them.

I was actually quite surprised myself when I found out the policy and how it differs between bio vs. adoptive parents.

[valleyfam]

No one even looked in the car to see if I had a seat.:thumbsdown:

[HEVY]

When I had DD2 they don't let you leave without a car seat (very surprised) But where DH works (# 1 trauma center and hospital in tri-state area) they don't care. My friend reported a mom leaving without a car seat and they told her there was nothing they can do only the police can stop her, when she asked to use the phone to call the police they told her it wasn't her business. Great hospital, sucky customer service. And I could swear that there was something passed that you could not leave any NJ hospital without the baby harnesed in the seat and installed in the car.

[mum2two]

I know that here in IL many of the infant seats I've seen in town have a sticker that indicates that someone has looked at the dates and ok'd it/maybe the nurses do it?

When I took DS home from the NICU in Utah and he had to do the 1 hour carseat test the nurses all ooooed and ahhhhed at my Combi Connection....they had never seen such a thing!

[Niea]

At the hospital in which I had DD, a nurse just made sure we had a seat and helped me get her in it. I was clueless and didn't even know how to tighten the harness, so thankfully the nurse showed me. She didn't check expiration dates or even if the base was installed correctly.

At a different hospital, the one I had DS, a nurse asked if we had a carseat before discharging me. I was still upstairs in my room. A volunteer wheeled me down, dropped me off at the front door, and left before DH had even driven up. Obviously nothing of the sort was even checked.

[unityco]

We require that the parents bring the seat in with them.

I'm curious about this... what if a parent has chosen to use a convertible? Would someone go down to the car to inspect it, or would the parents be required to bring it up to the floor? (I'd hope not! :eek:)

[CaseyRN]

All I had to do was sign a paper saying I had a car seat. An orderly wheeled me down to the car and didn't even look at all. I was not even questioned by a nurse.



same here

[cowgirlsmommy]

Hospitals around here will not allow you to take your baby home if you do not have a proper car seat. They check expiration date and the minimums for weight and height. I know someone who tried to use a convertible seat right away but her baby was 1lb under the min so they wouldn't let her.

[Shanora]

I'm curious about this... what if a parent has chosen to use a convertible? Would someone go down to the car to inspect it, or would the parents be required to bring it up to the floor? (I'd hope not! :eek:)

I'm not sure about here, but in the last place I lived in Ontario, they required that you bring the seat up, before discharging you. My friends has to uninstall their convertable in order to have their baby released.

[ketchupqueen]

I'm curious about this... what if a parent has chosen to use a convertible? Would someone go down to the car to inspect it, or would the parents be required to bring it up to the floor? (I'd hope not! :eek:)

I brought my last baby home in a convertible. Yes, my husband brought it up from the car. It was necessary to fit the baby in it anyway, so why not do it where there's a bed to prop the seat on and do it properly instead of breaking your back doing it on the ground? (And we brought her home in a Radian, too! Nice heavy seat. My husband carried it over to the nursery once she was fitted in it, and they lent us a red wagon that they use for taking bags to the car and such to take it down. The tech was really impressed, had never seen a Radian in person and if she hadn't been busy would have wanted to play with it, I'm sure!)

Anyway, yet another reason that parents need to be confident that they know how to install their OWN carseat!

[mamamoz]

And I could swear that there was something passed that you could not leave any NJ hospital without the baby harnesed in the seat and installed in the car.

When my dd10 was born in NJ, we had to show the car seat, etc before we left the hospital. When my dd3 was born at the same hospital, they didn't even look.

[jubgulia]

We brought DS2 home in a convertible that was not an ideal fit. I think they looked in the car before dashing off back into the hospital before we even put him in it.

We had a used infant seat to bring DS1 home in. Luckily, a nurse saw us waiting for the elevator and pulled us back to another room to show us how to tighten him up properly and told us a few general things about car seats.

[loufrando]

When I had dd1, they didn't say a word about car seats to us. An orderly wheeled us down, kind of glanced at the car to 'see' that there was a car seat (from about 10 ft away) and then left before we'd even put dd in.

When I had dd2 (different hospital) I think someone asked us if we had a car seat. They didn't ask to see it. We said yes, an orderly wheeled us out and left before we'd even gotten in.

There is the law in CA that you have to have a carseat for the baby to leave the hospital, but neither hospital I've been to seemed to care in the least what kind of car seat, what shape it's in, how it's installed, whether the baby fits the seat or is strapped in correctly. :thumbsdown:

[Pepse]

so what would happen to a parent taking a taxi or a bus home? They don't own a car much less a need for a car seat

[TechnoGranola]

so what would happen to a parent taking a taxi or a bus home? They don't own a car much less a need for a car seatI think some places, car seats are required in taxis as well? In my province, they weren't required several years ago, not sure about now.

But, ya, if you're taking the bus or walking home, how the heck can they require you to have a car seat?

[ketchupqueen]

In CA you would be required to have a carseat for the taxi as well. Not sure about the bus.

[Niea]

But, ya, if you're taking the bus or walking home, how the heck can they require you to have a car seat?

My hospital said that no matter how you were getting home, you still had to have a carseat. So yes, even if you were walking home or taking the bus, you need a carseat.

I think the rationale was that at some point, you were going to ride in a car (which is pretty true in my city, since public transportation is still very much lacking) so they made you have one before leaving the hospital.

[TechnoGranola]

My hospital said that no matter how you were getting home, you still had to have a carseat. So yes, even if you were walking home or taking the bus, you need a carseat.Ugh, that's pushing it too far, in my opinion. They can't exactly monitor homebirthing mamas. Next they'll be making you bring your crib in to make sure you have that "safety" device for your baby too. Too bad for you, if you were planning to co-sleep. :mad:

(and not directed at you Niea! Just venting my frustrations at the control occurring some places and hoping it doesn't become widespread.)

[codex57]

My hospital had the same rule. If you were walking or taking the bus, they still wanted you to bring in a seat. They see seat, then you're allowed to leave.

[An Aurora]

I'm curious about this... what if a parent has chosen to use a convertible? Would someone go down to the car to inspect it, or would the parents be required to bring it up to the floor? (I'd hope not! :eek:)

I'm not sure about here, but in the last place I lived in Ontario, they required that you bring the seat up, before discharging you. My friends has to uninstall their convertable in order to have their baby released.

No, if you have a convertible we have to walk the baby out to the car, and check the fit once the baby is in the car seat.

[fyrfightermomma]

I'm curious about this... what if a parent has chosen to use a convertible? Would someone go down to the car to inspect it, or would the parents be required to bring it up to the floor? (I'd hope not! :eek:)

With both my kids it was required to bring the seat up to the room, so I'm guessing that means convertible and all.

Their reasoning wasn't so much checking the carseat. It was that they wouldn't allow you to walk around or be wheeled around without the baby in the seat. I guess they thought you'd drop it or something. It was too much liability for them. My nurse informed me no babies are allowed in the hallways outside of bassinettes or car seats.

I guess when you get out to the real world there is a magical bubble that goes around you and prevents you from dropping the baby hehe:whistle:

[stephie1012]

when DD was born they just had to see the seat, the nurse wheels you out anyway. I asked her if she could check to make sure DD was in right and she said no bc shes not a tech and for insurance purposes. Well dd wasnt in right the chest clip was at her belly uggghhh

When DS was born they just had to see the seat as well
this is in NJ
i thought i read no matter what you cannot leave the hospital without a carseat

[ketchupqueen]

Now, see, when I had my 1st and 2nd I was wheeled down with baby in the carseat, but with my 3rd I walked down (I insisted) and because I had the convertible I slinged the baby. (Another good reason to use a convertible from birth; I do NOT like carrying them around in those but neither do I like being wheeled in the wheelchair. Which, btw, is not done by nurses at my hospital, but adolescent volunteers, aka candy stripers, blech. They go HARD over the bumps and all. If I have a c-section, or am bleeding really hard again, I'll consent to be wheeled, otherwise, I'm never being wheeled out after a normal delivery again.)

[PixieEMT]

I did my CEU update class at Evangelic hospital near me. Most of the people in the class where from Evan hospial or Geisinger.

I grabbed a pack of info about their maternity center. The one sheet had all the info for the classes they offer and free scheduled seat checks by CPST. It had specifically in the one paragraph about seats more than 6 years old.

[natalie77]

I know that with my DD and first DS, I brought my seats up (infant seats don't remember the kind.....8 & 11 years ago) With second DS who is 12 months now, I had the base in for a week before then my hubby brought the seat to the room the day we were leaving. We had a Baby Trend Flex Loc and the nurse/tech had never seen one before. She loved the front adjust and ease of everything. They wrote down the brand, manufacture date, expiration date, serial number THEN they made sure he fit good and made sure I knew how to tighten it properly. She told me I need to show other new moms how to do the seats. She then walked us down and watched hubby put him on the base and made sure it latched and was installed correctly. I assume this is how it is at the hospital I delivered at but it could just be her

[henrietta]

fisher price stay in views are good for 8 yrs from dom, but i think most of them have already expired or will very soon. the last dom's were either late 2000 or early 2001. i have 2 of them (not using either--we bought a new seat), one exp last month, and the other expires in december.

tell her there is a strap you can buy to carry your seat the same way. i loved my siv's, but since they would exp before ds2 outgrew them, i haven't used them at all this time. i was afraid i couldn't give them up!

henrietta

[Kat_Momof3]

Have her find out the date. Since it is the FPSIV, with the 8yr lifespan, lets hope it isn't expired.

Maybe (crossing fingers and knocking on wood) it will last her till the baby can go to a convertible carseat.