Did you give birth at Evergreen Hospital?

Starbuck5

Hey ladies-

I'm in the process of choosing a hospital and was wondering if anyone here had given birth at Evergreen Hospital in Kirkland and what your experience was like. 

The more details about the staff, room, process, etc. the better.

Thanks in advance for your time!

Seattle_JiLLn

Yep I had both of my babies there... I had great experiences.  The nurses I had were all nice.  The rooms are nice and you have a private room which is really good.  The food wasn't terrible.  The NICU staff was phenomenal.  Most of my friends have delivered there too and everyone has been happy there.  I have two friends who had their second babies in a non-hospital setting, but not because they were unhappy with Evergreen...

I would probably pick a doctor over a hospital though.  You'll be with your doctor for 9 months and only at the hospital (hopefully) for a day.   I'd of course want to make sure that your doctor is affiliated with a hospital with a NICU and all in case of emergencies, but most of them are, so it's not a huge issue in this area.   There are so many really good hospitals around here, we are lucky to live here!

zazzu

I haven't given birth yet, and hope I don't for a few more weeks, but I see the midwives at evergreen and I really like them. Their office is in the hospital. I've also been to the maternity triage unit twice and really really liked the nurses there.

Mysticblossom21

I had DD at Evergreen and it was a really good experience. My OB was able to deliver my daughter (instead of another doctor on call). I ended up with a c/s and was there from Tuesday morning until Sunday afternoon. I was offically released on Friday but DD had to spend some time in the special care nursery and was there until Sunday. I had my own room the whole time and when DD was moved to the special care nursery after I was discharged, she also had her room that we were able to stay in there with her.

The nurses on both floors were great all except for one, but that can happen any where. It certainly wasn't enough to deter me from having another kid there if we decide to have any more. They really are a great group of people and are really attentive. I think Evergreen was a great choice for us.

MrsAmyB

Ditto a lot of what the others said. Pick a provider over the hospital. I had DD through the midwives mentioned above. I LOVE them and planned that they help me with pregnancy #2 but moved to a high risk Dr (affiliated w/Evergreen) at 12 weeks. With DD I was induced and enjoyed all the staff but one nurse...which can happen anywhere. If I could do it again, I would have requested a different nurse. We felt very well taken care of. We were in 1 room the whole time and it's a private room. I have TONS of raves for how they house the high-risk moms and prepare them for the end of their pregnancy and life in the NICU. I have been in Overlake's NICU an it doesn't hold a candle to Evergreen. I also used to volunteer in the NICU and all staff are wonderful.

sunmountain

Delivered both kids there via C-section (unplanned and planned).

Pros:

• Private rooms (share bathrooms at Overlake - not sure about Swedish)
• Deliver and recover in the same room.
• Very breastfeeding and baby centric approach, great lactation consultants
• Great NICU if you need it (we researched b/c DD had a possible heart condition which turned out to be nothing but wold have felt comfortable with their NICU)
• Post partum care follow up is helpful
• Most nurses are good, I felt like overall they were helpful
• Food isn't great but could be worse (it's really crazy how unhealthy hosipital food is for a place that is supposed to help make people well)
• Not a teaching hospital like UW so you don't have student doctors - there are student nurses though. You can request not to have them as part of your care.
• There is a big window alcove with a bed for DH  - bring a sleeping bag though (it's cold by the window).

Cons:

• It was 25 minutes from our house
• I had 2 bad experiences overall in terms of delivery mostly compounded by 2 nurses (1 each time) who I hated. Just go with your gut on this at any hospital - if you for any reason don't like a particular nurse - just ask for a new one. I should have.
• Parking can be challenging but I think it is at most big hospitals
• For DH - the cafeteria is really far from the FMC and the snacks in the fridge on the floor are just okay. Bring your own food or have people bring him meals.

Overall I think it's a good facility. I just had bad deliveries and nurses who jaded my whole experience.  I would probably check out Swedish before I decided IF we had another baby which is unlikely at this point.

 

mrssmith717

I loved my experience at Evergreen- you definitely want to be with a provider that you like, though! 

I liked all of the nurses except for one during my Post Partum stay. That's one out of 6. I think it's just the way it is- you can't get along with everyone!  Although, if I were to have a horrible nurse, I would ask for a different one. I don't think it's an Evergreen exclusive issue.  

I will definitely go back for my next child- although my first labor was so quick, I might be planning a homebirth for #2! 

Zista

I plan on giving birth at Evergreen, and reading all these stories makes me wonder if the "one bad nurse" was the same one or two every time!  Thanks for the advice on requesting another nurse... I will be sure to do it.  We will at most have this experience twice in our lives, and it's definitely worth it to make sure it's a positive one. 

preston18

sunmountain:

share bathrooms at Overlake

I had DS in 2008 and had a private bath.  I was in patient for 5 days so maybe that's why, but it looked like all the rooms I walked by had private baths.

Starbuck5

MrsAmyB:

Ditto a lot of what the others said. Pick a provider over the hospital. I had DD through the midwives mentioned above. I LOVE them and planned that they help me with pregnancy #2 but moved to a high risk Dr (affiliated w/Evergreen) at 12 weeks. With DD I was induced and enjoyed all the staff but one nurse...which can happen anywhere. If I could do it again, I would have requested a different nurse. We felt very well taken care of. We were in 1 room the whole time and it's a private room. I have TONS of raves for how they house the high-risk moms and prepare them for the end of their pregnancy and life in the NICU. I have been in Overlake's NICU an it doesn't hold a candle to Evergreen. I also used to volunteer in the NICU and all staff are wonderful.

I absolutely agree about picking a provider over the hospital. 

I am currently seeing the midwives at Evergreen and really do love them.

Although the midwife will be there for the birth, I was curious about how others enjoyed the experience as a whole (nursing staff, actually using the amenities offered such as the birthing ball, squat bar, jacuzzi tub, etc.)

From people's responses it does sound like a great experience overall. I never thought about asking for a new nurse if we didn't get along, but I will certainly do that if the situation arises.

Starbuck5

Thank you sunmountain for sharing your C-section experiences there. Your response was very helpful.

I will definitely ask for a new nurse if I don't get along with the one that I'm assigned with.  

PS: Your babies are beautiful!

Starbuck5

Thank you everyone else for your responses. They are incredibly helpful!