| Moderator Policy
The policy regarding this note is as follows:
All responses about particular hospitals must be by mail.
General comments on selecting a hospital, such as teaching hospitals
versus standard hospitals, are welcome.
Please feel free to put in inquiries about particular hospitals (to be
responded to by mail) or general inquiries about selecting a hospital.
To discuss labor and childbirth, you will find existing discussions in
the following notes. Do not use 1133 to discuss anesthesia or other
issues around labor:
156
173
232
267 <-- general discussion
301
563
576
To discuss hospital visits, you will find existing discussions in:
511
557
731
927
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| This reply entered for Lyn Tripp.
PERFCT::TRIPP 43 lines 12-SEP-1991 12:58
-< you DO have rights! >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Although I can't give you any personal experience with B&W, as is the
case in ANY teaching hospital you do have rights. You have the right
to tell the third, fourth, fifth, or sixth resident, intern or medical
student who comes in to ask the same set of questions "ENOUGH!
already", and ask him/her to leave. You do have the right so say that
you only want to deal with your *personal* physician, or one of his/her
associates.
In my case, with my first deliver I was
induced using Prosteglanden suppositories. The very nature of how the
medication is administered is very personal. A senior resident
(female) came into our labor room to explain that MY OB was tied up in
an emergency delivery and either we could wait about a half hour or she
would be willing to insert the suppository, purely our choice. We
allowed her to do it. After that I had to deal with one or two other
residents and was assigned one nurse who only checked in periodically,
unless summoned by hubby or I. When the change of shift came about I
was introduced to another nurse, again the only one I dealt with, and
she stayed and ultimately assisted in the delivery.
Much the same thing happened 20 months later when our son was delivered
by a hasty C-section. I had one nurse who assisted in the prep,
delivery and post delivery care. Ironically it was discovered after my
son's birth that she was the one who had assisted in the first
delivery! (unfortunately our first was a stillbirth, died in utero).
As for seeing the baby, usually unless you've had general anesthesia
you should be able to hold the baby immediately, OR and this is
important, as soon as YOU are ready to hold the baby. Baring of course
that something goes wrong and the baby needs some immediate attention.
You also have the right to have the baby in the room as much or as
little as YOU choose to.
All of this, providing you are a "normal" delivery and Low risk, could
include a birthing room experience, which would mean you may not have
to delivery in a Delivery Room itself. You may have an Intraveines
started in your arm, some hospitals use this as SOP, you may or may not
request some pain relief for yourself, such as injections of pain
killer and/or Epidural which may be uncomfortable but not outrageous.
Please relax, a lot of these questions will be answered if you go
through some sort of Lamaze classes.
Lyn
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