Patient/Family Services

(A) Each hospital with a maternal and newborn service shall provide culturally and linguistically appropriate prenatal, postnatal and family-planning services either directly or through referral to an outside agency. (B) The hospital shall make health education materials and activities available in the major languages identified through the acute hospital’s language needs assessment pursuant to 105 CMR 130.1103(A) and plain language. (C) The hospital shall have visitation policies for all service levels that promote parent-infant contact and maintenance of the family unit, while providing safety and privacy. These written policies shall be made available to families. (D) The hospital shall develop policies and procedures to provide information and referrals, where appropriate, to parents of babies with special health needs about resources such as early intervention, self-help groups, and other community contacts as soon as possible after delivery. (E) The hospital shall develop and implement policies and procedures regarding providing support and referral for the family experiencing the death of a newborn, and providing families the opportunity to see, hold and participate in the care of their infant during and after the dying process. (F) The hospital shall provide information about the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program’s benefits and services. As appropriate, staff shall refer patients to the WIC program closest to their residence.