Newborn hospital discharge

Discharge is not only the moment you go home. It is the handover between hospital, family and community services. Before leaving, you need to know what to watch and who to call.

Criteria to clarify

Ask whether the team has assessed:

• stable temperature, breathing and color;
• feeding and hydration;
• urine and stool;
• weight and expected early weight loss;
• jaundice and whether bilirubin follow-up is needed;
• newborn screening used locally;
• pediatric or neonatal examination;
• safety of going home.

You do not need every technical detail, but you do need to know if checks remain.

First visit after going home

Before you leave, confirm when the baby should be seen again. Follow-up may be sooner after early discharge, jaundice, feeding difficulty, prematurity, weight loss or other risk factors.

Write down date, place, phone number and documents to bring.

Feeding and diapers

Ask for practical instructions:

• how often to offer milk;
• which cues show hunger or tiredness;
• what to do if the baby does not wake to feed;
• how many diapers to expect;
• when to contact the midwife, pediatrician or unit.

If breastfeeding is getting established, ask where to get support in the first days.

Documents

Check that you have:

• discharge letter;
• screening results or instructions;
• prescriptions if any;
• appointments already booked;
• useful contacts;
• birth registration instructions if provided locally.

When to call right away

After going home, do not wait if your newborn breathes poorly, turns blue or gray, is hard to wake, does not feed, has few wet diapers, vomits green fluid or blood, has fever, low temperature or worsening jaundice.

Useful links

• First 48 hours with a newborn
• When to call the pediatrician
• Post-birth documents
• First-year pediatric visits