However, in a new report published this week, medical experts have highlighted the danger associated with delaying the naming process.
In the medical journal Paediatrics, experts write that giving newborns nondescript names, which are then entered into computer systems, significantly increases the risk of hospital mix-ups.
Lead author Jason Adelman and his team came up with a new naming convention for babies, whereby ‘Jane Smith Babygirl Smith’ would become ‘Janesgirl Smith’.
To measure how effective the new system was, the team looked at how many ‘retract-and-reorder’ events – which log close calls in identity mix-ups – occurred when using the new system versus the old system. They found that there was a 36% decline in these near-misses when the new naming-system was used.
“All neonatologists know this is a problem, but weren’t able to quantify it,” Adelman said of his findings.
Commenting on the research, leading expert Dr Gauthem Suresh said: “The way we name babies in the hospital has to be really thought of very carefully.”
