Hospitals And Birthing Centers
NOTE: Choices in Childbirth has a great webpage listing Labor Intervention Statistics.
PSP Member advice about choosing hospitals:
"I wish we had taken the time to explore OBs / hospitals closer to home. The taxi ride to the upper east side whilst I was in active labor was not an experience I ever want to repeat!"
"Choosing a birth location that was close to home was key. I personally think any hospital experience no matter the reputation is a roll of the dice, mainly colored by who's on staff that day/night. Being close to home was helpful mentally and made the trip home much shorter and less nerve wracking."
Related PSP articles:
The Park Slope Parents Birthing and Beyond Toolkit, featuring 70+ pages of wisdom on everything from preparing for your BEST birth, caring from your mental health as an expectant parent, and hospital logistics to activities to do with baby, healing your body after birth, and managing the transition into motherhood.
Pre-birth Advice from PSP Members
Advice on getting to the hospital on "D" day
Important Message from Park Slope Parents (PSP): Just a reminder, PSP member posts are not checked for accuracy. The content is for general informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice. www.parkslopeparents.com is not intended to, and does not, provide medical advice diagnosis or treatment. Never disregard professional medical advice, or delay in seeking it, because of something you have read on the PSP groups or on the www.parkslopeparents.com website. Never rely on information in an e-mail or on our web site in place of seeking professional medical advice.
Pros
• Supports rooming-in
• Encourages breastfeeding
• Full-time lactation staff
Cons
• Located in Manhattan
• No in-hospital birth center
Pros
- Highly recommended midwife staff
- Personal attention
- Home-like atmosphere
- No hospital intervention
Cons
- Must transfer to hospital via ambulance in case of emergency
Birthing classes:
http://www.brooklynbirthingcenter.com/class-descriptions
Pros
- Highly recommended medically
- Great nursing staff
- On-site lactation consultant
Cons
- Far from Park Slope
- No in-hospital birth center.
- Not ideal for natural childbirth: High epidural and intervention rate.
Pros
- Highly rated hospital
- Excellent NICU
- Excellent nursing staff
- On-site lactation consultant
Cons
- Upper East Side location is far from Park Slope
- Not ideal for natural childbirth (90% epidural rate); no in-hospital birth center
- Small labor rooms
Pros
- One of the most highly rated hospitals medically and in terms of patient experience
- In-hospital birth center an option for natural childbirth
- Highly recommended nursing staff
- Progressive hospital policies regarding breastfeeding and rooming in
Cons
- Midtown Manhattan location is a distance from Park Slope
