For the curious - what's in a birth kit?

mcgee · October 2009

Several people asked this in my post below, so for the curious, here are the birthing kit details. Obviously this is only applicable if you're planning a home birth. Smile

Basically, our midwife has a list with the supplier, so all we had to do was call up, give them the name of our midwife, and then let them know which, if any, optional items we wanted.

They included a fancy birth certificate that we'll fill out and stamp with the baby's footprints. Obviously that's not the "legal" one, but it's a nice and unexpected touch.

The kit includes: chux pads, a bedpan, paper towels, cotton balls, hydrogen peroxide, betaspet, a peri bottle, gauze sponges, a bulb syringe, hibiclens, gallon sized ziploc freezer bags (don't ask - I have no clue what those are for), mesh panties, little baby hats, a tape measure, an amnihook, suction catheters, sterile gloves, flexible drinking straws (again, not a clue why those are in there), a digital thermometer, cord clamp, alcohol prep pads, lube jelly, lancets, q-tips, plastic backed sheets, and sterile scissors.

We also ordered some peri cold packs and a water birth net (gross, but if you deliver in the birthing pool the net can be used to scoop 'stuff' out of the pool).

That was about $100, tax and shipping included.

In addition to that, we have a list of stuff we have to gather which includes towels, wash cloths, sheets, a carpet protector to use with the birthing pool, a new garden hose and a connector to attach said hose to the kitchen sink (to fill the birthing pool), receiving blankets, diapers and clothes for the baby, and plastic protection for the bed. We've also got a yoga ball that I can use during the birth, a heating pad, a rice sock, and some other massage therapy type stuff. We've pretty much got it all gathered, minus the connector piece for the hose and the carpet protector.

Oh yeah, and food. Big Smile I am cleaning out the fridge, freezer and pantry this week, and we'll be stocking up so there's plenty to eat and drink. The midwife gave us a suggested list of foods/drinks to have around for me during labor, but of course Mike will want something to eat/drink, and we'll have stuff for the midwife and her apprentice to nibble on too.

It sounds like a lot, I know, but it's more or less the equivalent of packing a hospital bag.

The midwife brings oxygen, everything to start an IV if needed, supplies for managing a postpartum hemhorrage or repairing a tear, the doppler, blood pressure cuff, and all the rest of the medical supplies that might be needed. She can manage a number of potential emergencies, so we feel like we're in good hands.

m_and_m · October 2009

A good tip my MW gave me for the bed- put your good sheets on, then a plastic/vinyl shower curtain, then a set of old sheets you don't worry about ruining. That way you can labour/hang out while delivering placenta/being sstitched and/or palpated/etc on the bed, then just strip it all off and go back to bed when it's done.

HSartteach · October 2009

That's really interesting. I have a question. Is the whole birth out of pocket or does your insurance cover any of it? And if it is not too personal, how much does a home birth cost?

mcgee · October 2009

m_and_m:
A good tip my MW gave me for the bed- put your good sheets on, then a plastic/vinyl shower curtain, then a set of old sheets you don't worry about ruining. That way you can labour/hang out while delivering placenta/being sstitched and/or palpated/etc on the bed, then just strip it all off and go back to bed when it's done.

We bought a vinyl fitted sheet from Wal-Mart, so I don't have to worry about shower curtains sliding around or bunching up. Yes

But yeah, I totally hear you about having a clean set of sheets underneath because if I have to rely on Mike to remake the bed post-birth, I'm screwed. I've never met a man more incapable of putting sheets on a bed before.

mcgee · October 2009

HSartteach:
That's really interesting. I have a question. Is the whole birth out of pocket or does your insurance cover any of it? And if it is not too personal, how much does a home birth cost?

That's an excellent question. Insurance coverage varies tremendously. Our midwife has an assistant who handles all of our insurance filings. We pay the midwife upfront (we're making monthly payments to her), and everything gets filed after the birth, and anything the insurance company will reimburse us for goes back to us.

We are using Kristen Elliott with Moms and Miracles, and her total fee is $2300. We pay another, I think, $150, to the backup midwife who comes along to the birth - she is there just in case there's an emergency with both baby AND me, since obviously Kristen only has two hands. We spent just over $100 on the birth kit, and I really haven't kept track of what we've spent on sheets, towels, etc., because I'm using the birth as an excuse to dirty up old linens, toss them and get new ones. Wink Ultrasounds and labwork are billed directly to our insurance company, and so far, we haven't had to pay anything for that beyond our regular copays.

Had we continued with a hospital birth, our out of pocket cost - our deductible plus the percentage we'd owe for the birth - was going to be around $3,000 for prenatal care and delivery with an in-network provider and in-network hospital.

Kristen is out of network, and obviously, so is my living room. Stick out tongue My guess at this point is that the insurance company should cover a portion of the amount we pay Kristen - so $2300+$150 = $2450, and they'll subtract our deductible, which we have paid towards but haven't met yet, and then whatever is left from that amount, we should get back 60%, for using an out of network provider. I think. Honestly, even if we don't get anything back from the insurance company, we're still coming out ahead financially compared to a hospital birth. As long as we don't have to transfer to the hospital for a serious emergency, that is. Because then we've paid the midwife AND we'll get stuck with a hospital bill, and that would really suck, but hey, if it's a matter of life and death, you do what you have to do.

We talked to a couple of Austin area midwives, and their fees ranged from about $2,000 to about $4,000 for prenatal care and the birth.

HSartteach · October 2009

thanks.

CollieJade · October 2009

Very cool, thanks for sharing! And my guess on the ziplocks is they're for freezing your placenta, you know, in case you wanna make a scrumptious meal out of it later. Stick out tongue

HSartteach · October 2009

CollieJade:
Very cool, thanks for sharing! And my guess on the ziplocks is they're for freezing your placenta, you know, in case you wanna make a scrumptious meal out of it later.

or give it to the dog for a treat Ick!

mcgee · October 2009

HSartteach:
CollieJade:
Very cool, thanks for sharing! And my guess on the ziplocks is they're for freezing your placenta, you know, in case you wanna make a scrumptious meal out of it later.
or give it to the dog for a treat

I don't think Dexter is that desperate. He prefers to follow Meredith around and wait for her to drop something.

userdeleted · October 2009

Very cool!

amyliisa · October 2009

CollieJade:
Very cool, thanks for sharing! And my guess on the ziplocks is they're for freezing your placenta, you know, in case you wanna make a scrumptious meal out of it later.

Ha - this is exactly what I was going to say. Great minds, and all that... Stick out tongue Thanks for all the interesting info McGee - almost makes me want to consider it, if it weren't for all the pain... Crying

thegastons · October 2009

Thanks for posting the info! Its really interesting to especially since I haven't had kids yet and haven't thought of all the options that are out there.