The Birthing Center or Hospital
Hi All!
I'm not a mom yet, but my husband hope to start TTC this summer. My husband and I have already started discussing whether to have our child in The Birthing Center in Wilmington or a hospital, I have heard good things about St. Francis.
I would like to go the Birthing Center route, I went there to get my annual and the midwives were wonderful, she was happy to answer my questions. My husband is just not fully convinced. He just does not want anything to happen to myself or the baby if something goes wrong. Plus my SIL had a traumatic experience and good have died when her son was born last year so he is spooked a little bit and my other SIL is about to have her third and believes that a hospital is the better route.
I don't discount what happened to my SIL and I would never put myself or my unborn child in danger, I just feel as if the birthing center is the right choice for me.
I just wanted to know if anyone has ever had any experience with either the birthing center/christiana/st.francis? Or how you convinced your husband to go the alternative route. I have watched the business of being born and plan to have him at least watch that to start and do a tour of the birthing center facility once we are actually pregnant.
Thanks!
Re: The Birthing Center or Hospital
I am going the hospital route so I can't help you with a lot of your questions. However, my opinion is twofold. It is your body so I think you should be making the decisions on what happens to it. Natural vs. epidural, etc. However, it is your H's baby, so he should have a say about it.
I think you need to wait and see if you get pregnant right away, how your pregnancy goes, etc. You could always do the midwife route at a hospital rather than a birth center. You and your H could also make an appointment at the birth center so they could discuss what they do specifically.
Good Luck!
Hi! I, too, am thinking about The Birth Center. I just found out I'm pregnant, so I know it is still early. I have an appointment with my regular OB/Gyn, but I think I might make an appointment for a tour at TBC. I told my husband what I was thinking, and he isn't too sure how he feels about TBC.
I have heard from several people that TBC is amazing. I remember St. Francis used to be not-so-good, but I think things have changed there. I like that it is right across the street in case there is a complication. And Christiana isn't too far either.
Sorry that I don't have any experience to share, but it sounds like we are in the same boat!
I delivered at Christiana and I thought they were great! I can't compare it to anything else but I have a couple friends who have delivered at Christiana as well as other hospitals and they told me they thought it was really nice as well.
In addition, Christiana is the only hospital in DE that has a Level 3 NICU (level 3 is the highest possible). I felt comfortable knowing that if anything were to go wrong, my little one would be in the very best care. So that was a big selling point for me.
~*~*May 2013 Moms Website*~*~
I used Bryn Mawr Birth center for my first child and had the most amazing experience. We've moved so this time around I'm using the Wilmington Birth Center. I feel so spoiled by the level of care and attention I've gotten from midwives.
I wish everyone would at least research the possibility to see if a birth center may be right for them-- so many people don't even realize it's an option.
My husband was skeptical at first but watched the Business of Being Born with me and came to the Birth Center orientation with me. Between those and what he learned in our labor class, he was sold and ended up loving our Birth Center experience and the fact that we got to bring our daughter home the same day.
I can't sell him on a home birth this time around
-- he wants to know there's a hospital close by for back-up, and I don't blame him.
That's just my experience-- you have to do what's right for your family. Good luck!
I am at The Birth Center in Wilmington (21 weeks along now) and LOVE it. I love it. This is my first but I've always gone the natural route on everything else and am, and was prior to being pregnant, a very healthy person in terms of general health so my pregnancy has been about as low risk as one can get. I feel totally confident in the care that I'm getting there and the fact that they will refer to a competent and compassionate OB who understands my needs and wants if i "risk out". My husband was also leary at first and they do offer an orientation beforehand where they lay out all the facts and figures. That settled my husband's anxieties for the most part. Like down to giving you transfer stats (both before labor, and during). They're a block from St. Francis Hospital, not even, which is where my sister delivered her son. But for "slow transfers" they will send you to Christiana Hospital, which has a better "high risk" unit (I worked with high risk pregnant women as a social worker in a prior job. They were all methadone patients so I'm quite familiar with CCHS). I feel totally confident in The Birth Center, their staff, and their experience. The care I've gotten both during my pregnancy and prior well woman care has been exceptional and if you're going the midwife/birth center route I HIGHLY Recommend them.
Speaking of hospitals, like I said I have more confidence (in professional rather than personal experience) in CCHS for a high risk pregnancy but I think that the size of the hospital would make me feel pressured into interventions I wouldn't want. St. Francis was great for my sister and the nursing staff at St. Francis was fantastic. She was induced and eventual emergency C-Section but they were very compassionate with her and explained what was going on to her young and kind of blissfully ignorant mind (she was 19 when she got pregnant unexpectedly) and 3 years later she still speaks VERY highly of them.