Latest on Pennsylvania Hospital maternity floor - Page 9 - PhillyBlog

banba · #81 (**permalink**) 04-30-2008, 01:50 PM

That was my concern. However now that I am almost 6 months I figure most of my appointments are out of the way and it will be worth it. What swung it for mwas when my midwife pretty much said she would not deliver in Penn under the current conditions.It made me feel less neorotic.

meleliza · #82 (**permalink**) 04-30-2008, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pbj

I thought living in the city was supposed to bring more options, this feels like less.

I feel this way too. It's such a frustrating situation! Maybe the only upside of having my boys so stupidly close together is that otherwise, I might have been facing this difficulty with all of you. I really hope you all find a solution to this. Best of luck.

1boygirlsx2 · #83 (**permalink**) 05-05-2008, 05:14 PM

Hi everyone

Hahnemann does take BCBS. They were having an issue with BCBS not reimbursing the hospital but from my understanding that situation has been resolved and they do take it

eggnova · #84 (**permalink**) 05-06-2008, 03:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by new in the hood

I delivered at Pennsylvania last week. I had been quite irritated to get the letter from the hospital about the renovations, since it arrived about 2 weeks before my due date. Switching hospitals or providers simply wasn't an option at that point!

First, the positive. As with my first birth, the nursing care was phenomenal. Couldn't have asked for more - both in L&D and in postpartum.

Fortunately, things weren't too busy when I went into labor, so after my PETU assessment, they moved me right into a delivery room. After birth, they were very respectful of my wish for nonseparation and an L&D nurse did the baby's bath and assessment right in the room, then we went to the postpartum room together.

I did have a roommate, as expected. To be fair, with my first birth, I had a roommate too. Poor thing had some problems and had to be moved into a telemetry unit. Of course, being in a shared room, I heard EVERYTHING about her situation - couldn't help it since the only choice would have been leaving the room, which was not an option given that I'd delivered 4 hours previously. Struck me as a huge violation of her privacy.

I then had a private room for a good 36 hours. They moved another woman into my room on my last night and that was irritating. It was the middle of the night (2:00 am) and she had to go through all of her check in procedures. She also had her baby in the room and the baby was a squealer. Nothing wrong with that, except that I was struggling to get sleep (I forgot how many times you get interrupted in a hospital). Plus, honestly, it is one thing for your own kid to wake you in the middle of the night, but pretty annoying to be woken by someone else's kid. Couldn't really be mad -- newborns cry, duh, but, you know what I mean.

Fortunately, I left pretty early the next day.

So, all in all, a 1/2 good, 1/2 bad experience. Again, even without the renovations, I'm not sure I would have had a private room. (With my first son, they told me privates were reserved for c-sections.) But, if we were going to have another baby (which we aren't), I would definitely go to a hospital with private rooms -- even given the advantage of Pennsylvania's convenience, the quality of the nursing care, and the quality of the NICU (which, fortunately, we didn't need this time.)

Thanks for sharing a recent experience. I am planning to deliver (my first) at Pennsy in June, and I'd like to hear some other firsthand experiences since the rennovations began to get a sense for what to expect. My biggest concern is delivering in the middle of the night and immediately being left alone in postpartum with an infant and forgotten about by the nurses while my husband gets sent home. I don't think I'd need him (nor want him) to stay every night of my hospital stay but it's that first 12-14 hours that scare me a little.

Orangina · #85 (**permalink**) 05-08-2008, 10:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pbj

So both Penn and HUP are laborist.

I'll be delivering at HUP in September so I checked with by OB on Tuesday and she assured me that someone in the practice would be delivering my baby not a laborist. She said HUP has debated having a laborist and considered it during especially peak times but at this point they have not gone that way.

jmmdkr · #86 (**permalink**) 05-14-2008, 07:41 AM

I just delivered my daughter (my first) at Pennsy on May 7. I had an amazing experience. I was admitted at 7 a.m. after my water broke, moved to labor and delivery at 8 a.m., epidural at 10:45 and delivered at 1:22 p.m. My labor and delivery nurse was simply wonderful. My doctor is Dr. Mellen, and Dr. Ufberg delivered the baby - they are both kind, funny, and wonderful doctors. My husband and I were able to spend about an hour with our daughter before she was taken up to the maternity floor. I was moved to my room around 4 p.m. and then we were reunited. Luckily, I did not have a roommate during my two night stay. As I was being discharged a new mom was moving into the room. The day and night nurses were extremely helpful and attentive. That being said, the maternity floor is sorely in need of renovations, it is dreary and worn - but the care that I and my daughter received was excellent, which is the most important thing. The current "rules" are that husbands are supposed to leave at 10 p.m. and cannot stay over. That being said, my husband stayed with me until midnight both nights of our stay, and then we dropped our daughter off in the nursery for the night (encouraged by our night nurse so we could both get some sleep) so that he could go home and get some rest without feeling like he was leaving me all alone with a newborn. He was back by 8 a.m. We weren't planning on that arrangement, but it worked out perfectly for us.

As far as laborists, they haven't started using them yet, and from what I understand, won't have that system in place for a while, so hopefully you will have a similar experience to mine when you deliver in June. Best of luck to you!

pbj · #87 (**permalink**) 05-16-2008, 03:39 PM

My OB said that July 1st is the start date for the laborist system.

crtphilly · #88 (**permalink**) 06-21-2008, 06:45 PM

I just delivered at Pennsy last Saturday. It was, compared to the experience of my daughter's birth 3.5 years ago, awful. I ended up needing a c-section and shared a room my first night. The rooms are ridiculously small and cramped. Its nearly impossible for both women to have visitors at the same time. My roommate had her TV on some cops show and her lights on until 1am. After I had been in labor since 6pm the evening before, that was not pleasant. That said, the rest of my stay I did not have a roommate. And it was best that the roommate was the first night, as I could not get out of bed the first 24 hours anyway. The construction noise is kind of annoying, but it's only during the week, not on the weekends.

As for the laborist model, it might end up being a good thing, based on the experience I had with the doctors on call from my practice during my stay. It would be nice to have someone around dedicated to the women delivering, etc.

The nurses I had were for the most part fabulous - especially the labor and delivery nurses. Some of the night nurses had an attitude problem but overall I found the nurses wonderful.

banba · #89 (**permalink**) 06-22-2008, 10:11 PM

Congratulations.
Some of what you mentioned re. the "roomie" is why I ultimately transferred to Lakenau- this was validated after my hsband recently spent 3 weeks in a hospital with a litany of room mates that I could write a book on and yes the rooms are so small.
However I am still sad to have let go of my mid wfe practice. I believe I will switch back post partum. The experience with a male doctor is just so different.

Reba · #90 (**permalink**) 07-01-2008, 09:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meleliza

I would agree with this. I had a wonderful experience in January 06 and a horrific one Sept 07. My problems were mostly with the doctors, but we did notice that the nurses in recovery were far less helpful and attentive than with #1. But since it was #2, we also didn't need as much help - although I was recovering from some horrific things the doctors did to me. The nurses in the labor and delivery unit were pretty much equally on the ball.

My best advice is to take someone with you who can help advocate on your behalf. You and your husband will be in a vulnerable position and it's good to have someone you can trust. A doula would be my suggestion, but a friend or relative might work too. Frankly, next time (not that there will be a next time) I'm thinking of bringing a lawyer with me. After all, the hospitals don't do anything without consulting them, I should have the same protection.

Whatever you do, DO NOT EVER let a resident touch you. I just know too many people who have regretted that, myself included. If I ever encounter that resident again, I quite seriously wouldn't hesitate to hurt her right back. It is your right to refuse a resident.

Rec:
1)If you don't want a resident to touch you, don't go to a teaching hospital.......
2)If you don't want the doctors to do 'horrific' things to you, deliver at home.....and invite your lawyer.
3)...if it weren't for 'morons' who go to med school and become residents, you wouldn't have great doctors.