The American Academy of Pediatrics has endorsed the following publication: Emergency Nurses Association. Position Statement: Weighing All Patients in Kilograms. Schaumburg, IL: Emergency Nurses Association; 2021. Available at: https://www.pedsnurses.org/assets/docs/Engage/Position-Statements/Weighing%20All%20Patients%20in%20Kilograms%20Final%20Web.pdf.
All statements of endorsement from the American Academy of Pediatrics automatically expire 5 years after publication unless reaffirmed, revised, or retired at or before that time.
Copyright © 2021 by the American Academy of Pediatrics
2021
Comments
RE: Weights of Hearts and Minds
1 September 2021
The UK introduced the metric system of weights and measures in 1971. It simplifies calculations especially of drug dosages and therefore is an important factor in patient safety. It has been completely embraced by health care professionals.
However, new parents - whose own parents were born after 1971, still invariably want to know their baby's weight in pounds and ounces, asking to know what the weight is 'in real money.'
Similarly, during covid lockdown when all our appointments were remote we asked parents to measure and weigh their children prior to the appointment. The overwhelming majority, with very few exceptions, would relay this figure in imperial (feet and pounds and ounces) rather than metric measures. This highlights the need to have readily available conversion charts so families can 'understand' any measurements.
Half a century after we officially changed to kilograms and meters, in the hearts and minds of most people in the UK, we still grow in pounds and inches. Good luck USA.
Competing Interests: None declared.