Infant care bed with evaluation capabilities

A method of carrying out an evaluation of an infant in a health care facility, said method comprising the steps of:

• providing an open infant care bed having a device for determining the weight of an infant, a device for determining the sucking strength of the infant, a device for determining the hearing ability of the infant and a device for determining the bilirubin concentration in the blood of an infant, each of said devices producing test results indicative of the determined parameter,
• providing a central processing unit (CPU) and a memory device in the infant bed,
• inputting a protocol of a plurality of tests desired to be conducted on an infant into the memory device, including weight, sucking strength, hearing ability and bilirubin concentration in the infant's blood to the memory device,
• manually inputting the test results for the tests performed by a caregiver on an infant set forth in the protocol of tests,
• using the CPU to send the protocol of plurality of tests and the inputted test results to a display device to display which inputted tests have been completed and which inputted tests have not been completed.

An open infant bed for use in the evaluation of an infant at a health care facility, said infant bed having incorporated therein, the following evaluation devices:

• a weighing device for determining the weight of an infant and provide signals indicative of an infant's weight;
• a pressure sensor device communicating with the mouth of an infant for determining the sucking strength of an infant and provide signals indicative of the sucking strength of an infant,
• a hearing device for determining the ability of the infant to hear certain frequencies and provide signal indicative of the hearing of an infant, and
• a bilirubinometer device for determining the bilirubin level in the blood of an infant and provide signals indicative of the level of bilirubin in the blood of an infant,
• the infant bed further having a central processing unit (CPU) and a memory device having stored therein, a protocol of a plurality of tests required by the health care facility in carrying out the evaluation of the infant using one or more of the evaluation devices, the plurality of tests including weight, sucking strength, hearing ability and bilirubin level,
• a manual input device to enable a caregiver to manually input and record the results of tests indicative of the infant weight, sucking strength, hearing and bilirubin level in the blood of the infant that have been preformed on the infant by the caregiver;
• and
• a display device, the CPU adapted to send the protocol of the plurality of tests stored in the memory device and the input by the caregiver into the manual input device to the display device to provide a visual display of the tests listed on the protocol and the test results that have been inputted by the caregiver.