How To Choose the Right Hospital
Wondering which hospital in your area would be best for you to deliver your child? Not even suer what it is you need to know before you can make an informed decision? Read onto the helpful hints below, and be able to choose a hospital that both supports your views and ideas on pregnancy labor and delivery.
The top 8 questions to ask and help you make your choice are as follows:
1) How many family/friends may be in my labour room?
2) Do you promote natural childbirth? Will I deliver in the same room that I labour in?
3) Do you require special procedures for labouring women, such as intravenous lines or electronic foetal monitoring?
4) If I need a Caesarean section, who can come into the operating room with me? How soon will I be able to start nursing after the operation?
5) Do you have an anaesthesiologist on call 24 hours a day for labor and delivery? Does the anaesthesiologist stay in the hospital or take calls from home?
6) How do you promote breastfeeding in the hospital? Do you have a lactation consultant on staff if I have difficulties with nursing?
7) Will I have a private room after the baby is born? Can my husband stay overnight with me? Will the baby be able to stay in my room?
Do you have a high-risk nursery? If my baby is born prematurely or has special problems, is this hospital capable of caring for the baby or will he or she be transferred to another hospital?
When you tour the hospitals, notice if the hospital staff seems warm and friendly. While the physical appearance may make one hospital initially seem more attractive, answers to the above questions are more important criteria to use in making your decision.
