Delivery at GWU vs. Sibley vs. Holy Cross and Kaiser vs. CareFirst

Marcy82

I'm due with my first baby in November and I wonder if anyone might share with me their experiences at Sibley or GWU/George Washington Univeristy Hospital or Holy Cross. Any thoughts? Anyone deliver at either and had a great time/terrible time? Heard anything?

I also have the "wonderful" opportunity to change my insurance right now from Kaiser (PRO: relatively apffordable cost, free for everything- blood work, delivery, appointments CON: any one of 20 docs in the Kaiser system can deliver the baby and I'll only ever get to meet one of them and my current OB has the personality of a shoe and doesn't seem to care about anything- I know it's nothing but routine for them but for me this is SO special!) to CareFirst Blue Cross (PRO: more choices of OBs including one I love, only one of six or so docs will be on call to deliver the baby  CON: expensive)

 Anyone who had/has Kaiser- did it really matter who delivered the baby? I feel like I'm blowing this totally 100% of of control. Why do I feel as though I'm special?  Why can't I just get over the whole cattle call birthing process?

 

help!

vtkgirl77

I delivered at Holy Cross and had a wonderful experience. I was impressed with their nurses, the private rooms, the food, etc. So, I would give it two thumbs up.

I have Kaiser insurance as well and I was very concerned about having a doctor that I may not have met deliver the baby. However, it turned out that during most of the labor, you are just with the nurses. The docs pretty much come at the end to help with pushing and deliver the baby. I ended up having a great doctor and it turned out that I don't think it would've mattered a huge amount to me who the doctor was as long as they knew what they were doing from a medical perspective. Also, I always joke with people that I paid $10 to have a baby. When I went to my first appointment to confirm the pregnancy, I had a $10 co-pay. After that, all of my prenatal care, after delivery care, and hospital bills were covered and I literally did not pay a cent. I've heard of others having to pay a lot to have a baby, so if money is a factor for you, I would make sure that you understand all of the costs that you would have with either plan (note that your Kaiser plan may not be the same as mine).

The other thing that is most important to me with a baby is having urgent care with Kaiser. Fortunately, DD was not sick much during her first year, however, there was one time where she had a very bad ear infection and we had to go into urgent care on a Sunday. I like knowing that they have urgent care until 1am every night, every holiday, and every weekend.

Lastly, I would say that if you don't like your primary OB, I'm pretty sure you can switch by just calling the membership number.

Anyway, good luck with your decision and I hope you figure out what will work best for you and make you the most comfortable.

ETA: One other thing, if you decide to change to CF, double check that they don't consider pregnancy a "pre-existing condition". I know some policies won't cover pregnancy related fees if you are already pregnant so just make sure you are covered if you do make the switch.

victoria1212

I do not have Kaiser but I delivered at Sibley and had a great experience. I actually spent time there twice- once for pre-term labor and then the real thing. Both time the nurses were great and they really made every effort to explain everything, make me comfortable, etc...For me, my doctor was more important than the hospital so if you have a doctor you like- personally, I see what you can do to stay with the doctor. There are a lot of great doctor and hospital choices in this area.

Marcy82

Thank you both so much for your comments. I really appreciate them.  I do enjoy the Kaiser urgent care as well. I think it's likely that I'm going to stay with them right now.  Money isn't too much of a factor, but saving is better than spending when you have a baby on the way!  I'm going to sleep on it a little bit longer.  Thank you again!!!!

cleigh11

I delivered at Sibley, too, but I would say my experience was just ok.  1st, you have to pay $200+ dollars a night for a private room and the rooms are definitely dated.  The nursing staff was fine.  I liked the ones on the PP floor.  I had a difficult time getting the LC to come see me.  She finally came on my last day (I was there for 4 days because of a c/s.)

I went there because my OBs deliver there and I really like my OBs;-)  

I think anywhere in this area you will get good care!

Good luck

mek10976

I was going to deliver at Shady Grove, but when my water broke at 32 weeks, the OB said to go to Holy Cross.  She never really said why (and I wasn't really in the mood to ask at 3am), but I'm assuming it is because they have an excellent NICU.  I had a great (at least as great as it can be to have an unplanned c-section and preemie) experience.  The nurses were great and very attentive.  There were many people to help us (social workers, lactation consultants, case managers, etc.) and felt well taken care of.  The NICU staff is exceptional, but hopefully you won't need their services.  We plan on having our next child at HC eventhough it isn't the closest hospital.

As for BCBS, that is the insurance that I have and am thankful for it.  I know that for my plan, I had to pay the out-of-pocket to cover my c-section and DS's NICU stay.  But that seemed like peanuts compared to the total bill.  I always think health insurance is worth the expense, if you can afford it.  DS has needed to see several specialists, and I don't worry about referrals.

mlvmd

Another Kaiser member and I delivered at Holy Cross.  I really liked Holy Cross.  Even though I had never met the OB that was there the night I delivered it wasn't a big deal.  She was awesome and although she wasn't there for most of the delivery/pushing, she did a fantastic job with my c-section.  Also, I didn't feel pressured to have the c-section (which turned out to save both of our lives) which I was kind of afraid of initially.

I also didn't see my the OB at the practice all that often, normally I saw a midwife/RN.  I really liked her but I have had ones in the past that I didn't and it was no big deal to switch.  They have a ton in the office so just try a few until you find one that you like.  I think the whole computer system that they have is great and I like that you have so many options/after-hours care situations.

Amy&Steve0421

I have Kaiser and I really like it for all the reasons mentioned above.  And it should be no big deal to switch OB's w/in Kaiser - I used the DC Urban Mom Forums - https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/list.page - to get recommendations for an OB.  I would recommend mine to you - but I am in Northern VA and it sounds like you are in MD.

Best of luck w/your decision!!

MaryOctober04

I delivered at Sibley and I thought it was totally fine.  The nurses were nice, helpful, etc.  The only thing to keep in mind about Sibley is that since they are relatively small, they do not have a NICU unit.. so if there are any issues with the baby, he/she will be sent to either Georgetown or GW and you will most likely be at Sibley. 

In terms of insurance, I don't have Kaiser or CareFirst, but my first priority is the doctor.  I go to an office where my doctor has a solo practice.  Plus, since I had a scheduled c-section, I knew he'd be the only one working on me. 

Hope that helps!

WinesNotWhines

I haven't delivered yet, but I plan to deliver at Holy Cross, and I've only heard good things about them. They have private maternity suites (at no extra cost) and a great NICU.

I have BCBS insurance and have been happy with them so far. I only had to pay a copay for my first couple of OB appointments, but now they are all covered with no copay. And I believe the out of pocket cost for a hospital delivery is something like $150.

tracy042206

I also have Carefirst BCBS PPO but our benefits are always changing so I would imagine it depends on your specific plan.  For me I paid my $25 copay my first OB visit and that was it.  I also paid my copay once for the perinatologist and that was it (but they bill all at once which I was told was why I didn't have a copay every single time).  After that I have 100% maternity coverage so we paid nothing but a copay for the baby at the hospital after that.

Liza61984

With my son in 2007 I had Kaiser and delivered at Holy Cross. I ended up having 3 different OBs during my labor (18 hours long) and they would just come in briefly every so often. They had just redone the maternity floor and all of the rooms were private which I loved. Also, my son ended up having to go to the NICU for 4 days and Holy Cross has a great NICU. My entire labor & delivery + his stay in the NICU ($35,000) and circumcision were completely free to us. I know have United Healthcare but still plan to deliver at Holy Cross in November even though Shady Grove is closer to me.