- Babies cared for in the hospital nursery cry more than they do when they are rooming-in with their mothers.
- Research proves that you will get as much sleep with your baby in your room as you will if your baby is away in the nursery.
- Experts agree that, unless a medical reason exists, healthy mothers and babies should not be separated after birth or even during the early days following birth.
- Interrupting, delaying, or limiting the time that a mother and her baby spend together may have a harmful effect on their relationship and bonding.
Delivery/During Your Stay Information
Maternity Admissions
When a patient arrives to our unit, we will monitor and assess her condition in our triage area, or “Mini Clinic” – this is across the hall from the main L&D ward, but still in the Women & Children’s Pavilion. Currently, there is only 1 visitor allowed in the “Mini Clinic” at a time & must be over the age of 12.
The Women and Children’s Pavilion is located on the main floor of the Women & Children’s Pavilion of RMC in Anniston. When you arrive at RMC, please enter the main entrance of Women’s and Children’s Pavilion. If you arrive between the hours of 9pm & 5am, you must enter through the ER and reception will direct you to Labor & Delivery.
Upon arrival, you will taken to an evaluation room for an initial exam. When your care provider confirms that you are in labor, you will be moved into a LDR (Labor, Delivery and Recovery) room and officially admitted.
What to Expect During and Immediately After Delivery?
Following delivery, you will remain in Labor & Delivery suite for a 2-hour recovery and then moved to our postpartum rooms. As the first designated baby-friendly hospital in the state of Alabama, we encourage newborn babies (if he/she is stable) to room in with the mother 24 hours a day to allow for bonding and allows the staff to educate mom on infant daily care.
While mother’s do have right of refusal, we encourage skin to skin contact on all deliveries (baby naked, not wrapped in a blanket) immediately after birth, and later on, as long as mother & baby are both stable. Fathers and significant others are also allowed to do skin to skin contact, even in the event the mother is unstable. RMC’s updated cesareans suites recently had clear drapes installed so that mother can view delivery of baby via cesarean (at the mother’s request)- we also allow skin to skin contact and in the recovery stage of cesarean.
Why skin to skin contact? Promoting immediate skin to skin contact following delivery helps with bonding, the baby’s temperature, heart and breathing rates are more stable and more normal, and the baby’s blood sugar is more elevated.
Post-Partum Rooming In
“Nap Time” is 1pm-4pm daily & is a special quiet time to allow mothers and infants to rest during the day.
Golden Hour: The golden hour will be in place after birth so that you and your baby can enjoy your first hour together uninterrupted.
Rooming In – Following delivery, mother and babies share a natural instinct to be close after childbirth. During your stay with us, you and your baby will remain together unless there is a need for supervised medical procedures that can not be performed at your bedside. Rooming-in will help you become familiar with your baby’s schedule & cues – helping you be more prepared for your baby’s own needs after discharge.