Decision Making on Mount Auburn or Brigham and Women's for Delivery..

Wow. so many great responses. I totally agree with Geraldine T. and the other positive responses about Mt. Auburn. I delivered both of my kids there with the midwives. They were VERY supportive and the postpartum care is phenomenal. You really do feel like you are in a hotel. My son was jaundice and needed to stay an extra day. They did every thing possible to let both my husband and I stay there so that I could keep nursing him. It was amazing. Very personal and caring.

The Mount Auburn is a great birthing hospital. Google an article in the Boston Globe by Tina Cassidy. Good luck.

I delivered at Brigham and Women's and have to say I dont think I would go any where else, even if for some reason my insurance told me I had to, I'd pay out of pocket. My Ob/gyn is excellent and I found all of the nurses to be amazing. It was one of the most positive experiences of my life and a year later I still talk about it and can't wait to have more children there!
good luck with your pregnancy and your decision!
Ali

I delivered both of my children at Brigham and Women. I highly recommend them. I had a great experience with them. All of nurses and doctors were very supportive and caring. They took excellent care of me and my newborn.

I had my 9-month-old baby in Mount Auburn Hospital, with 2 midwives and the experience was amazing. The midwives (in fact one midwife and one student) were very supportive, for me and also for my husband. He was feeling useless and hopeless, and they guided him in how to help me. They didn't leave me even one minute during the 8 hours of labor, massaging me, giving me a warm bath with aromatherapy... My mother wouldn't have been more patient and supportive.Their advise were precious and allowed me to have a natural childbirth, without any other painkiller than their (and my husband's) voices and massages.
After the birth, they immediatley put the baby on me for latching and their counselling was again priceless in breastfeeding (I never had sour breast... and still hapilly breastfeeding at 9 months)
The post natal service was also very good, making me feel more in a hotel than in a hospital (room with view on the river, large choice in the room-service menu..) . All presonnel took good care of us and always made sure that we had all the information needed regarding everything (how to take care of the baby, breastfeeding, circomcision...)
My husband slept over in the same room (the armchair is a bed-convertible).
Whatever choices we would make, the team would make us feel that as long as it is our choice it is the good decision. They never pushed us towards breasfeeding vs bottle, co-sleeping vs nursery, circomcision...
I feel very lucky and priviledged that I could give birth in Mount Auburn. I don't have any experience of any other hospital, so I can't compare but I'm very comfortable in recommending Mount Auburn.

I have delivered at B&W and had a very positive experience. Also, if there are any problems with the baby, children's hospital is right there. Good luck with your decision. Maybe you'd feel better if you went on one of their tours? They run through isis maternity in brookline.

I have delivered all 4 of my children at Brigham and Women's and wouldn't go anywhere else. My girlfriend had her first at B & W her 2nd at Beth Israel and her third at Mass General (all due to her insurance changing). She prefered B & W hands down. If you are unsure take the tour and ask questions. A lot of how your delivery goes is up to your doctor so if you want laid back I would discuss that with him or her. Also they have plenty of midwives at B & W if that is more your style.

Hey K.,

I too was a graduate student at Harvard when I gave birth to my first child, and was using the HUHS for both the ob/gyn care, the delivery and pediatrics. I've had both kids at the Brigham, and both times things went quite well (I was 34 for my first child). I considered myself low risk despite my age, and basically, I was. I had a regular, no complications, vaginal delibery. My nurse/midwife gave me a back massage during labor, and when I was dialated to seven, I asked for, and received a great pain medication (on an IV drip) called Nubain (I didn't want an epidural because I had read that it could delay the process of labor and delivery - also, I wanted to be able to walk around during labor - which I did, a lot - many walks and four showers from midnight to 8:00 am). Nubain did not impede my delivery in any way and did not affect my child. All in all, I remember the whole experience quite vividly and I elected to have my second child there as well (through another health plan). What you do for yourself during your delivery is quite personal, and you should do what makes you feel most comfortable. Best of luck - I'm sure that the care you receive at either hospital will be great.

I had my second child at BWH and thank goodness for that. They have an incredible NICU (which we needed) and are connected to Children's Hospital. I know we don't like to think that anything bad will happen, but unfortunately....sometimes it does. Go to the best equipped of the 2 hospitals, which I would venture to guess is BWH.

You should go and visit both hospitals - I know the Brigham actually has a pre-delivery program where you can see the rooms, look at the menu, talk to nurses, etc. Perhaps Mt. Auburn has one as well. I delivered two children at the Brigham and would deliver there again. The staff is tremendous, the rooms are clean, the services after delivery are great - even the food is good. In addition to visiting the hospitals, it might be important for you to know how far away each is from you and to know how to get to each and how quickly you can get to each when you go into labor. Best of luck to you. Wherever you deliver, you will go home with a beautiful baby.

I had both my girls by c-section at Mt. Auburn and didn't want to leave either time! My OB works out of Mt. Auburn but I had some experience there before I was pregnant when I had emergency gallbladder surgery in 1997. It was great then, too, and I was new to the area and terrified! The maternity nurses are amazing, very low-key and so supportive and sympathetic to what you go through after a baby. My oldest had lots of trouble nursing and they didn't make me feel guilty for formula supplementing. When I was expecting my second I was actually looking forward to seeing my nurse friends again! Good luck with your decision - I have heard awesome things about Brigham and Women's, so I guess you'll be fine either way.

I had 2 deliveries at BWH. They were both scheduled C-sections, so I cannot speak to the labor experience, but the care I got on the floor was excellent. I was looking forward to going back for the 2nd. And if I had a 3rd I'd be happy to go back again. The nurses were all very supportive of breast feeding, keeping baby in the room is no problem, but they were also very good about bringing baby back in time to nurse before he got frantic if you do send him to the nursery (I did send him to the nursery for a few longer snoozes). The food is also pretty good and you order off a menu and they bring it right up.

I delivered two babies at B&W and had the most amazing experience both times. I loved my OBGYN and I found the nursing care to be exceptional. I did not find anyone to be "pushy" in the delivery room. It was wonderful both times. My kids are 7 and 9 now, so it wasn't yesterday, but thought I would pass it along.

I'm a first time mom and delivered at Mount Auburn. I had a wonderful experience there. I chose the Midwives at the Center for Women (over the OBs at HUHS also) because they were so warm and supportive and caring. Mt Auburn looks a little worn and rundown compared with the Brigham but it's also small and less frantic feeling. The nurses on the labor and delivery were amazing and took terrific care of me during a long and hard labor. I liked that the midwives had a long-standing relationship with the doctors but that the doctors really stayed out of their way; there were also no residents or med students around. If you're interested in the midwives, they have a meet and greet session once a month and you can also call for a tour of the L&D floor. Good luck with your decision!

hi
i had my daughter at mt auburn in september of 06 and it was a great experiance. i ended up having to have a c-section and they really took care of me. i have nothing but great things to say about them.

Hi K.,

First off, congratulations on your pregnancy! I am currently pregnant with my third girl and having delivered at both Mt Auburn and Brigham I feel qualified to answer your questions. My first daughter was 5 weeks early and despite the panic that came with that, everything was great. I was working downtown at the time and so my OB's office used Brigham. Overall it was a positive experience but it was somewhat factory-like. There are just so many people around that it is always buzzing and you do feel a bit like a number. For my second daughter we were designated to deliver at Mt Auburn. We did a tour and immediately you could tell how much more relaxed (but no less official or supportive) their facilities were. On the day of delivery we had a wonderful view of the Charles from our room and felt really relaxed and more at home. Other things such as easy parking for us and visitors made the experience that much better. Anyway, I am going to be delivering this baby at Mt Auburn soon and I feel really happy to be going there again. Good luck and I hope this helped you!

K.,

Good morning. I am a new mom to a 7 month old and had just a wonderful experience at Mount Auburn. I just can't say enough about the staff and I had the most amazing care from my OB who also works with a midwife. Her name is Beth Hardiman and she works with midwife Arianna Stein~both are simply amazing!!! I had a very long labor and I did not feel pressured or pushed to do anything. I truly believe that if I was at a different hospital with a different stff that I would have had a c-section. I have always heard overwhelming positive things from others who have delivered at MAH~both from new moms as well as doulas who deliver at many hospitals. I am also happy to recommend my doula (who is also apprenticing as a midwife). It was really helpful to have her there even though my husband was just so supportive throughout everything. If you have more specific questions feel free to call or email me. Good luck, L.

Don't know much about the Brigham but have a few friends who delivered at Mt Auburn and had a good experience!. One had to have an emergency C-Section and all was fine. For all the best laid plans, babies do what they want to. Best wishes.

Hi K.,
I had my first (and only so far) at the Brigham, I can not rave enough about the place and I am a nurse. You call the shots there. I found the nurses to be top notch, willing to teach and answer any questions no matter how silly. I ended up having c-section after 3 hours of pushing, the experience was amazing. Everyone in the OR from nurses to my OB-GYN made the experience surreal. Everyone is going to hear good and bad about any hospital but I can only give you my opinion and it was excellent. I also feel it is all of what you make it to be. The staff is there to teach especially the first time mothers so you take advantage. God forbid anything go wrong, there is a NICU there. You are not stuck in a hospital while your baby gets sent somewhere else.
I wanted to try breast feeding and realized very early on that it was not for me. the nurses respected my wishes and did not try and convince me otherwise, which I feel would have brought on unnecessary guilt, you'll feel enough of that after the baby anyway!!
Lastly, my husband stayed every night and was made to feel completely comfortable. the only complaint he had was how much he had to pay for parking.
Hope I helped!! Best of luck.
E. J.

I had my son at B&W and my experience was a bit different. I had contractions for quite a while( I won't scare you with how long :) ) and there were issues such as heart decels and there was meconium in the amniotic fluid and these were mentioned to us, but no one really explained what that meant or what the dangers were or how they were handling the issues. It was very frustrating. Also, when my baby was born, they didn't tell me the sex, I remember asking over and over and over. Finally my husband went over to the observation bed(?)and looked. They knew that I didn't know as we spoke about it while my son was being born.
The night nurses at B&W were wonderful, but the day nurses were quite impersonal and even rude. Our son had to be taken to the NICU twice and we mentioned that we were worried and one nurse had the nerve to say "Well, you were the ones who decided to have a baby". Granted, this was over Easter weekend and I am sure none of the staff wanted to be there, but we couldn't check out fast enough.
Congratulations and good luck with your decision!!!