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Maryland Babies
Anyone deliver at St Joe's?
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Re: Anyone deliver at St Joe's?
I posted a (REALLY long - sorry!) response about SJMC about two weeks after I delivered there this summer - here's the C&P of it:
Anyway, as to my experience at SJMC - my L&D nurses (I had two because DS took his good old sweet time arriving
and we ran into another shift) were amazing and so helpful and
supportive. They really guided me through the labor process smoothly
and were always on top of whatever wants/needs that I had during
labor.
The on-call anesthesiologists (again, ran over into another shift, so I saw two different anesthesiologists during my time in L&D) were both fantastic - the first administered my original epi, and he was great with explaining everything, taking his time, and really making sure it was done well. Unfortunately, I developed a "window" where the epi wasn't doing its job, and anesthesiologist #2 came in and discussed our options (attempting to reinsert the epi catheter in hopes the adjustment would fix the window or pulling it all out and redoing the entire epi), then offered his opinion on which he felt would be better - we tried first w/reinserting the catheter, and when that didn't work, he came back immediately and redid the epi, which meant he had to administer it while I was in the midst of contractions that were 1.5 mins apart - needless to say, I was not the "ideal" patient for giving an epi to at that point, but he did it quickly and was really working to try to give me some relief in whatever way he could. He even came back after DS arrived just because he said he needed to see the end result.
The nurses we had on the M&B unit were all really sweet. They definitely helped us to feel more comfortable w/DS and were willing to provide assistance in any way they could. The techs on the unit all came in and got their jobs done as quickly as possible, which we appreciated (especially the middle of the night checks!). Everyone we encountered was very friendly and polite, so no complaints there.
The ONLY thing I wasn't crazy about was the LC - she gave us some useful info, but I feel that she left a LOT out that would have been helpful to know, going into BFing as a first time mom. The LC department does a follow-up call a few days after you leave the hospital, and that REALLY wasn't a great experience - the LC that called me never bothered to introduce herself (just said that she was calling from the hospital's LC department), didn't ask if it was a good time to talk (we were in the middle of Target!), and proceeded to embark on a 15 minute phone call w/me in which, among other things, she told me that DS had lost too much weight prior to leaving the hospital (which he hadn't - we had been told by various doctors, nurses, and even the LC that visited us in the room that the normal range of weight loss was 5-10% by the time you checked out of the hospital, and DS ended up losing 9%, so he was perfectly w/in the range - and clearly, if he HAD lost too much, the pediatrician/nurses would have let us know!). There's more to it, but suffice to say that I was just offended by the whole thing and really wasn't pleased w/that side of things. I WILL say, however, that a friend of DH's is an OB who delivers at SJMC and she stated that she has a few LCs that she really likes, and some that she really doesn't... so I guess it just depends on who you end up seeing/talking to.
In terms of the hospital itself, DH and I really appreciated the security measures offered by the L&D and M&B units. The visitors policy was fine (allowed for plenty of time for people to come and go). We also LOVED the private room - that was so nice. Food wasn't the greatest, but then, I don't think I've ever had good hospital food.
Overall, would I deliver there again? Absolutely. The bad experience w/the LC is definitely not enough for me to overlook the fantastic care that DS and I both received from start to finish.... every single day of forever.
Thanks so much for all the feedback! How does the visitor policy work? Because in this little booklet I have it says only 1-2 visitors at a time.. but I have a huge family from Jersey and CT that have all told us they're getting in the car as soon as we call to say we're at the hospital..
It's a private room, right? Is there a comfortable place for your husband to sleep?
Also, did you use the beeper service they have? I kept joking with my husband that I'm making him get a beeper in late December because he never answers his phone.. but I saw they provide one 6 weeks before due date for free (with a deposit)
I had both of my children there. With my first child I had AWFUL L&D nurses. One of them was probably fresh out of nursing school and told me that I was being dramatic (ummm.... labor is pretty dramatic. And it freaking hurts). She really got pissy any time I made any noise during contractions and had no patience at all. My sister in law, mother in law and cousin- all nurse- were there and couldn't believe the way she was treating me. At one point my MIL told her to call anesthesia because something was wrong with my epidural (it didn't work) and she told MIL that I was over reacting and was fine. (Later on during my c/s it stopped working again and I had to be knocked out)
15 months later for my planned c/s with my 2nd child I had amazing L&D nurses. Both times my mother & baby nurses were amazing- I had the same one for both babies!
With my first child I really didn't like the LC, but when I had her again 15 months later it was a different experience and she was very helpful!
We had a freakin' party in the L&D waiting room by the time DS finally made his arrival (I went in at 8 am; DS was born at 1:54 the following morning). They were perfectly fine w/plenty of people in the waiting room, but our relatives had to keep switching off security badges to get in and out of the unit. We had, at the most, I think 6 people plus DH and me in the L&D room after DS arrived... as long as the bigger groups (4-6 people) didn't stay in the room very long, my nurses didn't fuss about it. I think the only times they asked anyone to leave was right before I began to push and after they'd been back in the room for a while after DS arrived (and then it was only because they needed to get us prepped to transfer over to the M&B unit). Nobody really seemed to pay much attention to how many people were in our room w/us on the M&B unit, but they still needed security badges to get in, and if the badges were used up for your room number, then your relatives got stuck waiting at the desk downstairs.
It is a private room (which is AWESOME - I don't know that I could deliver in a hospital w/o private postpartum rooms after that experience!), and they were recently renovated, so they're actually pretty nice. DH slept at the hospital w/me and DS (we were there for 3 nights) and he said that the daybed actually wasn't bad - it was a built-in along the wall, but it was plenty long and DH swore the cushions were decent. No complaints from him.
And no, I didn't use the beeper service, because by the time I hit full-term, I was done w/work (I'm a teacher and finished the school year at 36w5d) and was at home... and the parsonage was right beside the church, so I could have waddled my pregnant butt over to DH's office if I really needed to.
... every single day of forever.
I delivered there and don't have many complaints. I had a planned c/s, so I can't comment on the L&D nurses except that my time in recovery was good, I was actually in a birthing room because recovery was full so I did get to see those rooms and it looked nice. The recovery nurse was helpful too.
I didn't like the LC's either, I saw two while I was there. They didn't seem to like each other either, they downplayed what the other had told me. And let me tell you, that wasn't much of a help for a first time mother trying to figure out nursing with an infant who was losing a lot of weight. I ended up kind of figuring it out myself.
But all in all, I would do it over again.