Do you have decision fatigue? Choosing where you’d like to deliver your baby is just one decision of what might feel like thousands, as you prepare for the arrival of your little one. 

If you’ve landed on Salem Health Familyl Birthing Center, congratulations on checking this decision off your list! 

Let’s cover what you can expect. 

Arriving at the Birthing Center
What time of day you arrive at the hospital will impact how you enter. 

If you arrive during their normal business hours (5am to 9pm), you can head straight to Building D and take the elevator to the 3rd floor. 

If you arrive between 9pm and 5am, you’ll need to enter through the Emergency Department. Don’t worry- you won’t be stuck in the waiting room. They move quickly and will help you make your way to Labor & Delivery.  

Once you arrive at Labor & Delivery, you’ll be greeted by a receptionist who will begin the process of checking you in. Filling out the in-take paperwork in advance will help expedite this process. 

Before you know it, a nurse will come to the lobby and escort you back. 

Intake & Triage

For most people checking-in, the first steps involve visiting a triage room. Your nurse will likely check your weight, vitals, do a cervical exam, and monitor both you and baby to determine how labor is going so far. 

Then, you'll either be transferred to a room where you can continue to labor, or if your provider is unsure that you're actively in labor, they may ask you to walk around for a while or continue with monitoring before making a determination. They may also recommend that you return home for a while until things progress a bit more. 

The Labor & Delivery Room

Once you’ve been officially admitted and transferred to your room, your nurse will check-in with you and ask a series of questions to finalize the intake process. 

A saline lock will be placed in your hand or arm to make it easier for blood draws or use of an IV, if needed. Your nurse will also set up the monitors that track contractions and the baby's heart rate. 

Monitoring has come a long way in recent years, and there are now options for completely wireless monitors that can even be worn in the bath!

Throughout labor, you will have one nurse assigned to you. That nurse will be in and out of your room, checking in, monitoring you, bringing you what you need, etc. They keep your provider updated as your labor progresses.

Comfort Measures and Pain Relief Options

Salem Health offers a variety of unmedicated and medicated options to help provide comfort and pain relief throughout the laboring process, including:

• A large bathtub/shower

• Birth balls and peanut balls

• Aromatherapy (various scents available upon request)

• Nitrous Oxide

• IV pain medication

• Epidurals

• Squat bars

After Delivery

After your baby has been born, your provider will place them on your chest for skin-to-skin bonding time. The umbilical cord will be clamped and cut after 1 minute, and you/your support person will be given the option to cut the cord. 

After approximately one hour of skin-to-skin time, your baby will be weighed and measured. That first hour of skin to skin time is important and protected. All newborn procedures wait until after the first hour unless medically necessary.

The final step is being transferred to the Mother & Baby floor, where you’ll be for the remainder of your time at Salem Hospital. 

We love supporting births at Salem Hospital! If you have additional questions about what it looks like to deliver at Salem Healthl, or are curious about what doula support looks like, we’d love to hear from you!