Home / Women's Health /

Your childbirth experience is a precious time, and we want to ensure that it's a positive one. Here at Paradise Valley Hospital, our Women's Center is a warm and welcoming place to bring your baby into the world. Each step of the way, we're committed to providing you and your baby with quality medical care.

Our Women's Center offers a full range of services including:

• Labor and Delivery
• OB Outpatient Triage
• Level II Newborn Nursery
• Postpartum/Gynecology
• Childbirth Classes and Tours

We invite you to tour the facility prior to your delivery by signing up for a tour at the hospital. To arrange a tour of our Women's Center, please call toll-free at 1-877-784-5005 or visit the calendar section of this web site.

Pre-registration
For your convenience, we encourage you to pre-register for your stay at Paradise Valley Hospital. Please fill out the online maternity registration form. You'll receive confirmation within the next few weeks that we have received your registration form.

WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU ARRIVE

Arrival
When you arrive at the hospital in labor or for any medical procedures, please stop by one of the registration areas to let them know you have arrived. The admitting staff will provide you with your hospital identification band and the necessary papers for your stay. You will then be taken to the OB Triage area. Here you'll be placed on a fetal monitor to determine whether you are truly in labor. If you are, you'll be transferred to a Labor Delivery Recovery (LDR) room and assigned a nurse who will ensure you're as comfortable as possible.

Labor, Delivery & Recovery
We've created a caring atmosphere at our Women's Center that is comfortable and safe. The LDR rooms are charming, private and spacious, and are designed to create a homelike environment. The rooms are fully equipped for labor, delivery, and recovery. This allows you and your family to remain in your room through the birth of your baby. The Women's Center also maintains a contemporary surgical suite within the labor and delivery area for deliveries requiring more complex medical care.

Pain management options
There are a variety of options available to ease your pain during labor and childbirth:

• Epidural Anesthesia
  Epidural anesthesia is a nerve block that reduces or completely relieves pain from the waist down. During labor and delivery, you remain awake and are still able (with assistance from your nurse and coach) to follow instructions to push during delivery. A big advantage of epidurals is that your baby feels no effects from the medication. But as safe as this method is, complications can occur on rare occasions. These may include infection, lowered blood pressure, bleeding, headache, back pain or partial paralysis. Not everyone is a candidate for epidural anesthesia, so we encourage you to talk to your doctor.

• Spinal Block
  A spinal block is similar to an epidural, but a smaller needle is used to inject the local anesthetic into the fluid space in your spine. (This is different from where epidural anesthesia is injected.) You'll feel little or no pain from the waist down, but you'll still be able to remain alert during recovery. Headaches can be a possible side effect.

• Pain Medications
  If your labor pains are intense or you're exhausted and still hours away from giving birth, your doctor may prescribe a stronger medication to help you relax and regain your strength. Most doctors will wait until you're 4 or 5 centimeters dilated before prescribing analgesics because they can slow your progress if given any earlier. Some pain medications can be passed to your baby while others may take a while to wear off. Your nurse will be able to explain the risks.

• Local Anesthesia
  A local anesthesia is used during an episiotomy to numb the vaginal area prior to incision.

• General Anesthesia
  If you have a Cesarean birth, you may have an epidural or spinal anesthesia for the surgery. If a general anesthesia is required, the anesthetic is injected into your IV to help you fall asleep. An anesthesiologist will monitor your respiration, heart rate, blood pressure and temperature during surgery.

Postpartum
Following the delivery of your baby you will be transferred to the postpartum unit where you will spend the remainder of your stay. Our postpartum unit is on the same floor as the birthing center and convenient for family and friends to visit. Our experienced and educated post-partum nursing staff will help you make the transition and assist in educating you on what to expect and how to care for your new baby.

Best of all, the rooms are comfortable and private, so you can spend quality time with your new baby. Each room is furnished with a refrigerator, microwave and reclining sleeping chair for a guest. Of course, if you need your rest, your baby may be cared for in our nursery at any time.