During and After Childbirth

About Our Program

Our team of experienced obstetricians, neonatologists, pediatricians, and nursing professionals will work with you to ensure that your childbirth experience is as comfortable as possible. We want you to feel at home while you are here, so we go out of our way to provide a variety of amenities such as tasty meals, a flexible visitation schedule, and a gift shop stocked with items you might need or enjoy while away from home.

• A room of your own. Your room includes a private bathroom and shower, flat-screen television, free Wi-Fi, Newborn Educational Channel, and a refrigerator which your family members can also use to store personal food items. The rooms are designed to resemble a “home away from home” — with relaxing colors, soft lighting, pleasant views, and a pull-out bed for your partner.
• Delicious meals. Our high-quality meals are tasty and nutritious. A free continental breakfast is available every day for all significant others. We provide a “Stork Dinner” celebration the night before you go home, offering a choice of lobster or filet mignon for both parents. We also accommodate special diets upon request.

Supporting your delivery

One support person can be present with you during the childbirth process. Working with your physician, a nursing professional specializing in labor and delivery will support, monitor, and assist you during the process.

• Wireless monitoring. We offer all maternity patients wireless fetal monitoring while you are in labor. Wireless monitors attached to your abdomen communicate data via Bluetooth technology, enabling you to move around during labor. The wireless sensors are even waterproof.
• Round-the-clock anesthesia. Anesthesia is available 24/7, including epidurals during labor which you can control yourself with the touch of a button (“patient-controlled anesthesia”). There is always an obstetric anesthesiologist in the hospital.
• Integrative health for relaxation. Our maternity nurses offer Reiki, a technique that involves a gentle laying on the hands-on or just over the body, as well as aromatherapy, to promote relaxation during labor.
• Caesarean delivery. Two operating rooms specifically designated for this procedure are located on our maternity unit, with a separate recovery room for maternity patients only. We have worked to reduce C-section rates in recent years and support vaginal birth after Caesarean delivery (VBAC) as well.

Bonding with Your Baby

To support the bond between you and your baby, we encourage skin-to-skin contact with your infant within minutes of delivery. We also minimize separation between you and your baby. We offer “rooming in,” where your baby stays in your room with you.

• Couplet Care. To facilitate the adjustment to new motherhood, one nurse will care for both you and your baby — an approach called Couplet Care. Exams and procedures, including your baby’s first bath, are performed at your bedside, so you and your baby are not separated.
• Breastfeeding support. Nurses and lactation consultants provide instruction and support around breastfeeding, newborn care, and what to expect after you both leave the hospital. You are invited to join our Breastfeeding Support Group, which is guided by a lactation specialist and meets each month. To sign up, please call 914-787-2141.
• Support when you are home. Once you are home, you can call our Baby-Talk Hotline at 914-787-4974 at any time to ask questions you may have about parenthood and caring for your infant. Our friendly telephone support staff is happy to answer your calls. Please note this is not an emergency phone system; we may refer you to your pediatrician for urgent matters. If you have an emergency, please call 911.

Newborn screening tests

Newborn screening includes simple blood tests to check for various conditions and disorders to help ensure your baby is healthy, or to identify problems early so they can be treated. In New York State, all babies are tested, even if the baby seems healthy and has no symptoms or obvious health problems. A tiny amount of blood is taken from your baby's heel, collected on a special paper, and sent to the Department of Health for analysis.

NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester has one of the state’s top-rated programs for newborn screening for metabolic and genetic disorders, recognized for adhering to recommended turnaround times. If your baby’s test indicates a potential problem, we can connect you with the specialists you need for further evaluation.

Enhancing your safety

Click or tap here to enter text. The maternity team at NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester participates in drills and initiatives to reduce the risk of maternity complications and learn to respond to them effectively, should they arise. Regular training is part of our ongoing commitment to provide the safest care possible during and after your delivery.

• Regular team briefings. Labor and Delivery clinicians meet daily to discuss patients on the unit that day, identify any risk factors or potential complications that may affect their care, and prepare an appropriate plan of care for the day. The Maternal-Child Health team meets monthly with representatives from every hospital department involved in maternity care to address any system issues that may affect patient care.
• Simulation training. At simulation training, staff learn how to handle issues such as obstetric hemorrhage (excessive bleeding), emergency Caesarean section, or shoulder dystocia (when the infant’s shoulders get wedged in the birth canal during delivery).
• Preparing for emergencies. We participate in the Safe Motherhood Initiative, which addresses obstetric complications such as hemorrhage, high blood pressure, and blood clots. We engage staff from all areas of the hospital to participate in drills to respond to these emergencies in real time.
• Keeping your baby safe. We ensure the safety of you and your family through an infant security system and closed-circuit television monitoring of the hospital grounds.

Why Choose Us

From our expert teams and private rooms to the latest technologies, support, and education, we make your stay with us as safe and comfortable as possible. NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester also has one of the state’s highest rates of compliance with recommended standards for breastfeeding and Couplet Care. There’s no better hospital in Westchester County to deliver your baby. Make an appointment today.