What is a “Family Centered Cesarean” (And How Do I Know If I Can Have One?)
As recently as two years ago, many area hospitals have begun offering a gentler cesarean option to their patients. Coined the “Family Centered Cesarean” its goal is to foster immediate bonding between mother and baby following baby’s emergence from the womb. Often, the idea of having a cesarean to welcome their baby comes with many unknowns: little knowledge of the procedures of the operation, less preparation for immediate postpartum and questions about how much access they will have to their baby immediately following the baby’s birth.
For families needing a repeat cesarean or faced ahead of labor with one, this has been a welcome change for many Maryland State Doulas clients. It does, however, come with some criteria that needs to be met. So how can you assert whether a Family Centered Cesarean is right or available to you? By breaking down the preparation for this game changing procedure, you can be assured it is available to you prior to delivery.
What’s The Difference?
What makes a Family Centered Cesarean unique? While each hospital providing this care to Maryland families has their own criteria, the majority of the following are met during the birth:
-the baby is immediately placed on Mother’s chest after removal from the uterus
-warmer environment often
-arms free to hold baby, and EKG placement moved to allow for baby to be with Mom
-a clear drape is utilised or drape lowered during birth with the head of the bed raised
-the baby remains with the Mother for the remainder of the procedure
-delayed cord clamping, and in some cases, a second clamping and cord cutting by the Mother’s support person
In most cesareans, after the baby is born usually the baby moves directly to the neonatal unit next to the operating room for baby to be cleaned, assessed, weighed, and wrapped. Sometimes there is only time for a quick glance from Mom before the baby and support person move to the recovery unit. The mother usually is then in the OR for an extra half hour or so prior to joining her family in the recovery unit.
By having baby with Mom immediately, the incredible bond between mother and child is allowed to begin right away. Many times, mothers who have experienced a family centered cesarean and had experienced a cesarean previously described it as gentler, more personal and meaningful due to the immediate access to their baby.
Can I Just Walk In and Have a Family Centered Cesarean?
For most hospitals, a conversation prior to delivery must occur with the attending physician to make sure that the procedure is right for you. The main criteria is that you must have a healthy pregnancy and baby, and that you are scheduling the procedure with knowledge prior to delivery that a cesarean is part of your birth plan.
Extra staffing must be on hand for a Family Centered Cesarean to allow a nurse to remain with the baby in the OR, so at this time, unfortunately, Family Centered Cesareans are not available to families experiencing surgical birth after an attempted labor, or in emergencies.
Also, if baby becomes distressed after delivery, the team has the discretion to take the baby to the neonatal unit to assess the health of the baby.
Does My Hospital Provide This Service?
It’s incredibly important if you are speaking with your physician about a cesarean to discuss the hospital’s protocol, and their comfort with performing a Family Centered Cesarean prior to your scheduled surgical birth. Many hospitals also require you to fill out a request form for the criteria you wish to have considered during the delivery in order to meet your request.
As of 2017, the following facilities in Maryland provide Family Centered Cesareans to patients meeting their criteria (as confirmed by Maryland State Doulas)
Anne Arundel Medical Center
GBMC
Sinai
University of Maryland Medical Center
Johns Hopkins
Howard County General Hospital
MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital
Of course, this doesn’t mean the absence of your hospital from this list means that your provider isn’t open to adopting the procedure. It’s always best to have a detailed conversation about what is and is not possible prior to your birth with your physician, to meet as many of your requests as possible.
We’re pleased that this option is now available to so many families wanting to have a wonderful, joyous and peaceful birth. Your labor doula
is happy to discuss what planning a cesarean looks like, as well as to help with questions to bring to your physician to put into place a truly amazing birth experience!