ST. MARYS — Grand Lake Home Health and Joint Township District Memorial Hospital’s Birthing Center has announced a new program titled Welcome Home Baby.

This new program has been developed to support new mothers and to evaluate the health and safety needs of new moms and babies who have transitioned from hospital to home.

A one-time Welcome Home Baby visit may be done in the comfort of your own home by a registered nurse. The nurse will obtain your baby’s current weight, and assess current feeding patterns. The nurse will perform a home safety check and provide you with home safety items including outlet covers or smoke detectors. During the visit, information will be provided regarding newborn care, breast/bottle feeding, child development, available community services, or any other concerns following delivery.

The staff and physicians of the Birthing Center at Joint Township District Memorial Hospital will identify the families wanting this support and will make a referral. Referrals will also be taken from hospitals outside of our area with newborns returning to our service area from another hospital who meet the criteria for the program.

The Welcome Home Baby program provides a one-time home visit to parents of newborns in the rural community, within a 30-mile radius around St. Marys, and including the counties of Auglaize, Mercer and parts of Shelby, Allen, Van Wert and Darke counties.

The Welcome Home Baby visit is provided at no charge through the generous grant funding from Proctor & Gamble and the Ar-Hale Family Foundation.

For more information about the Welcome Home Baby program or to schedule your appointment, please call Grand Lake Home Health at 419-394-7434.