Labor & Delivery

Your baby will be placed skin-to-skin with you right after birth.

• If you have a vaginal birth and there are no complications, your baby will be placed directly on your chest after delivery and will remain there until the first breastfeed or for an hour for the formula-feeding mother
• If you have a cesarean birth, and there are no complications, your baby will be placed skin-to-skin with you as soon as you are stable and alert, usually in the recovery room. We also encourage skin-to-skin holding with the father or other labor support person
• The mother-baby couplet is transferred together to a private room in the Women and Infants area. We encourage minimal separation during your stay

Skin-to-skin contact is important for all babies because it helps with bonding, keeps your baby warm, keeps your baby’s blood sugar in a normal range and gets breastfeeding off to a great start. Babies who are held this way also cry less. Skin-to-skin holding allows your baby a gentle entry into the world and assists your baby to progress through a number of amazing developmental skills.

• Spacious, private, comfortable labor and delivery rooms that are equipped with the latest technologies and amenities for you and your child’s safety and comfort
• Sofas, large in-room bathroom with shower, work area and storage space so your partner can comfortably stay with you overnight
• Medical equipment is fully integrated into each private room to support the transition from labor to delivery or to accommodate emergency procedures
• Special recessed, remote-controlled lighting for physician and staff during childbirth
• Three C-section operating rooms are available on the unit, just in case

• Warm and inviting area filled with windows, natural light and space to walk around
• Large waiting area features laptop connection, a quiet area, a kids’ zone and a TV
• Flexible visiting policy where the mother determines the number of guests visiting at one time
• Lockers for partners are provided in the operating suite as well as centrally located in the unit
• Cell phones can be used throughout the hospital to keep in touch—the only restrictions are in areas of high technology, such as the operating room
• If your support person needs to leave the unit to visit the cafeteria, the staff will be happy to call his or her cell phone to keep in touch
• A video-monitored indoor path for moms in labor who want to walk around

Anesthesia pain control is a very important part of the labor and delivery process. An anesthesiologist from Northwest Suburban Anesthesiologists will work very closely with your obstetrician and labor and delivery nurses to provide you the most state-of-the-art pain-control options available. The safety of you and your baby are our top priority, and our pain-management options are designed with this in mind. Therefore, NCH’s Anesthesia Department has an obstetrics-dedicated anesthesiologist available around the clock, every day of the year.

• Our experienced staff is available to care for your baby anytime, day or night, if the need arises
• We support the mother’s choice to send her baby to the nursery, but we encourage rooming in, as it is proven that mothers actually rest better if the baby remains with them

• Specially trained nurses and board-certified obstetricians are in Labor and Delivery 24/7, working in conjunction with your attending OB during childbirth
• Obstetric hospitalists are available to care for you in an emergency until your own obstetrician arrives
• Maternal-Fetal Medicine physicians from NorthShore University HealthSystem make daily rounds and are available 24/7 to consult with your attending OB for high-risk pregnancies
• An anesthesiologist dedicated to labor and delivery is available 24 hours a day
• A neonatologist and NICU nurse attend all high-risk deliveries

• Rapid-response teams are on standby at all times, just in case
• Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) staffed by Lurie Children’s neonatologists deliver advanced care, attend high-risk deliveries and provide 24/7 on-site coverage to the babies in the NICU 
• Advanced telemedicine system for additional consultations