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What Tools Do Hospitals Use for Fetal / Infant Death? (Survey Data)
Every week, we deliver evidence-based strategies for modern perinatal bereavement care. Written by Jay CRNA, MS, specializing in obstetrical anesthesia, and Trina, a bereavement expert, both who have experienced loss.
Trina Parkin
February 19, 2026 • Read time: 7 minutes
In Today’s Issue:
🔗 The best resources I found this week
📖 Deep dive: What Tools Do Hospitals Use for Fetal / Infant Death? (Survey Data)
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Want to learn how to get Forget Me Not Boxes in your hospital? Reply “Bereavement boxes”
🔗 The Best Resources I Found This Week
❤️ Share Pregnancy & Infant Loss Support – Mentioned 23 times in surveys. Free trainings, pamphlets, and support groups for families (with 10% off using code FORGETMENOT).
❄️ CuddleCot Bereavement Care Toolkit – Free checklist and guidance for using cooling bassinets (top tool at 30% of mentions).
👥 Labor and Delivery Nurses Rock Facebook Group – Active discussions on IUFD tools and real nurse experiences (our go-to for trending topics).
📖 Deep Dive
What Tools Do Hospitals Use for Fetal / Infant Death? (Survey Data)
This week’s deep dive came straight from one of you.
Every Thursday, we ask what you want to learn next—and we read every response.
One nurse wrote in: “What tools do hospitals actually use for fetal demise?”
So we crunched data from all our surveys (1,400+ L&D nurses) plus the chat from our last bereavement event.
Tool / method | Purpose | Count |
|---|---|---|
Cooling bassinet | 144 | |
Cooling bassinet. Read more about founder here. | 84 | |
Cooling crib/blanket (non‑branded) | Other cooling methods (cooling mattress, blanket, improvised ice‑machine set‑ups). | 19 |
National support group, printed resources, trainings, and annual memorial events. | 23 | |
Bereavement training program and memory‑making supplies (folders, checklists, teaching materials). | 107 | |
Memory boxes (hospital‑made or generic) | Box containing photos, molds, locks of hair, baby bands, blankets, and printed resources. | 134 |
Hand/foot molds & casting kits (alginate/plaster, Model Magic, Luna Bean, etc.), retail | 3D molds of hands, feet, or face for parents to keep. | 92 |
Photography taken by nurses (hospital camera/phone) | Bedside photos taken by staff when no external photographer is available. | 119 |
Community‑donated blankets, hats, gowns, crochet wraps | Handmade clothing and blankets used for photos and burial. | 128 |
Bereavement room / dedicated suite | Designated room or suite for families experiencing stillbirth or infant death. | 73 |
Weighted bears (non‑branded) | Bears weighted to baby’s birth weight to aid grief and bonding. | 57 |
Books for siblings (multiple titles) | Children’s books used to explain the death of a baby to siblings. | 61 |
Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (NILMDTS) | Volunteer professional photography for stillbirth and infant death. | 29 |
Hospital‑based bereavement program, parent education, training, and memory‑box supplies. | 31 | |
Professional photography outside NILMDTS (local photographers) | Contract or volunteer photographers arranged by the hospital. | 41 |
“Butterfly” / “Angel” door symbols (various vendors, often in‑house) | Door markers signaling fetal or infant death to staff and visitors. | 39 |
Water immersion photography (clear basin + camera/phone) | Photographing baby in warm saline water to soften features and support memory‑making. | 38 |
Forget Me Not bereavement boxes (That’s us 🙂) | Curated memory boxes and supplies for miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss. | 21 |
Shadow boxes (generic) | Framed displays of baby items, photos, and name. | 22 |
Heartbeat bears / heartbeat in a bottle | Recorded heartbeat stored in a bear or vial as a keepsake. | 27 |
Ceramic plates with baby handprints/footprints as a keepsake. | 18 | |
Keepsake jewelry (locks of hair in resin, necklaces) | Necklaces, lockets, or resin pieces incorporating hair or prints. | 17 |
Cooling carts, memory‑making supplies, and burial support. | 13 | |
Angel Gowns (gown nonprofits) | Handmade gowns from wedding dresses for dressing the baby. | 14 |
Tiny hand‑sewn layettes and wraps for very early stillbirth. | 10 | |
Tiny diapers and burial garments for very small babies. | 10 | |
Education, research, and support resources around stillbirth and infant death. | 10 | |
Memories Unlimited | Vendor providing memory boxes, molds, and keepsake items. | 10 |
Memory boxes, burial assistance, and support groups for bereaved families. | 8 | |
Knit/crocheted cradles and memory items for holding very small babies. | 8 | |
Baby 360 (3D keepsakes), vendor‑specific | 3D scans and printed keepsakes (hands/feet, ultrasound images). | 6 |
👋 That’s a Wrap!
Before you go: Here are ways we can help your hospital
Education: Please share our newsletter with your co-workers. Our priority is empowering nurses with the tools to support patients with modern, evidence-based bereavement education.
Bereavement boxes: Our bereavement boxes were designed out of a need for a modern high quality solution for families suffering from miscarriage, stillborn, or infant death.
Reply to this email “Sample” to get a free sample sent to your hospital.
What we prioritize:
Tools for hospitals to create a bereavement experience for families to begin their grief journey
Educating nurses with modern bereavement standards and continuing education.
Helping hospitals build a foundation of trust and support, so bereaved families feel seen and cared for—now and in the years to come.
These boxes were born out of our own personal losses, including Jay’s (CEO) 15 years of experience working in labor and delivery as a CRNA and witnessing time and again how the hospital experience can profoundly shape a family’s grief journey, for better or for worse.
Until next week,
Trina and Jay
Co-founders of Forget Me Not
How did you enjoy today’s deep dive?
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