Labor and Delivery
At Beverly Hospital, our care team works together to provide a safe, family-centered, personalized childbirth experience. You will have many choices and options during your labor and childbirth, and we are here to help you every step of the way.
During your labor, you will have a private room with your own bathroom, equipped with a shower and whirlpool tub. Your obstetrician or midwife will assist with the birth of your baby, and our experienced and caring Labor and Delivery nurses will be with you throughout your labor, childbirth and recovery. In addition, a board-certified obstetrician is in the hospital 24 hours a day.
Pain Relief Options
We can offer you a number of options to help make your labor more comfortable, including:
- Relaxation techniques to help manage labor pain. Some expectant mothers take our Hypnobirthing class to learn this process.
- Pain medications to help provide relief.
- Nitrous oxide, which you inhale through a mask.
- Epidurals, which are available 24/7 at Beverly Hospital. Our Anesthesiology staff is extremely sensitive to the comfort level desired by our mothers during labor and childbirth. They are here to meet your comfort needs and answer any questions you may have.
Inducing Or Augmenting Labor
Sometimes labor doesn't progress as efficiently as hoped. In that case, your healthcare provider may suggest medication or other measures for induction (getting your labor started) or augmentation (helping labor move along at a better pace).
Cesarean Birth
If you will be having a cesarean birth, at Beverly Hospital we perform it in a family-centered manner, known as the "gentle cesarean."
Certain simple measures can foster a calm environment and early family bonding while in the operating room and recovery room. During a "gentle cesarean" birth, we limit unnecessary conversation and invite you to bring your own music to play during the birth. If you wish to see your baby during birth, clear drapes can be used.
Skin-to-skin contact is encouraged as soon as possible after birth. Early skin-to-skin contact can also help with your baby’s temperature regulation and microbiome formation, which protects against germs. Cord clamping is delayed to help ease the baby's transition, and we encourage breastfeeding as soon as possible after the baby is born.
Sharing The Happy News
Your support person is welcome to bring a cell phone to use before and after your baby’s birth. You and your support person can take photos and videos when you are in your room. Please ask the staff if they would mind being videotaped before you begin filming. To protect the privacy of other patients, videotaping or picture-taking are not permitted at the Nursery window or in the hallways.
