Baby Boxes Arrive at Aspirus St. Luke’s

Flowers, onesies, a home cooked meal. There are plenty of ways to support new moms.

The country of Finland, however, does something a little different. For over 75 years, every mom in Finland has received a baby box after delivery.

Designed to be baby’s first bed, a baby box is a specially made cardboard box fully equipped with a mattress and bedding. And, it also includes newborn baby supplies.

In Finland, the baby box was created in an effort to reduce the infant mortality rate by providing a safe sleeping space for every baby.¹ Currently, the infant mortality rate in Finland is half the U.S. rate.²

Considering these great benefits, Aspirus St. Luke’s Birthing Center is proud to be the first hospital in the area to distribute a Finnish-style baby box to all new moms who deliver in here. Since June 2017, Aspirus St. Luke’s has partnered with Babies Need Boxes Northland (BNBN) to offer this program.

Babies Need Boxes Northland (BNBN) is a local chapter of Babies Need Boxes, a nonprofit 501(C)(3) organization that provides the life-saving Finnish baby box to new mothers. BNBN’s mission is to equip mothers with resources needed for a successful transition to parenthood. They provide babies with a safe sleep space, newborn care essentials to promote self-sufficiency and interactive items to foster positive parent-child interactions.

Historically, Babies Need Boxes Northland has distributed boxes only through a needs-based program, focusing on the more vulnerable populations in our community. However, the newly launched partnership with Aspirus St. Luke’s Hospital now distributes a universal baby box that’s made available to all mothers who deliver at Aspirus St. Luke’s.*

So far, the program launch has been very well received and new moms are incredibly excited to have the opportunity to bring home a baby box of their very own!

1. According to a recent New York Times article, baby boxes in the U.S. have not been tested by the “Consumer Product Safety Commission and haven’t been tested to meet the mandatory safety standards required of all other infant sleep products on the market.” ASTM International has established a task force to propose safety rules for baby boxes.

2. CIA World Factbook.

*Note: the needs-based box is still available to mothers through various community support organizations (Life House, ECFE, Fond du Lac Community Health Services, etc.).