Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Maternity Tour

UPDATED: October 2015     A few years ago I attended a maternity tour at the Memorial Hermann-Sugar Land hospital just in case I needed to transport to a hospital during my home birth. I ended up having a quick and peaceful home birth, but I am still glad that I took the time to see what area hospitals were like. Here are my impressions from a few years ago. Please let me know if any changes need to be made.

Image created using Canva

They make it easy to sign up for a tour on their website. I was able to pick a date and time that worked for me. I appreciated this option because making phone calls is one of my least favorite activities.

A nurse took us on a very simple tour of a Labor & Delivery room. The room had a bathroom with a gorgeous jacuzzi tub. I asked if those could be used to provide pain relief during labor. Unfortunately, the answer was no due to liability reasons and not being equipped for laboring in the water. If those policies have changed, that would be a wonderful option for women in Sugar Land. A few willing doctors, water proof monitors, and nurses who are comfortable with the idea could help provide women with one of the best comfort measures there is. There is a reason that warm water is called "nature's epidural." It really helps!

How your baby will be monitored during labor is a conversation that needs to happen with your care provider long before the big day. Will you have continuous or intermittent electronic fetal monitoring? Unless your doctor agrees to intermittent monitoring, it will be continuous.

The rooms are not equipped with birthing balls to be used during labor, so remember to bring one.

There are no squatting bars available.

You will stay in the same room for labor, delivery, recovery, and postpartum.

In the event of a Cesarean section, there will be mandatory nursery time for the baby.

Babies who are born vaginally will be placed directly skin to skin immediately after birth. Direct skin to skin contact is unlikely to happen for several hours after a Cesarean birth. It would be something to discuss with your care provider. More places are providing more Family-Centered Cesarean deliveries, which include immediate skin to skin contact.

Everyone must leave the room, including the partner/spouse, when an epidural is being administered. This is typical in most hospitals in the Houston area.

Most women will deliver in the supine position with their feet in stirrups. If you are interested in birthing in a different position, discuss with your care provider ahead of time. Birthing in other positions is not typical for most hospital births in the Houston area.

There have been a lot of changes to this hospital in the nearly three years since I took my maternity tour. I am excited to see what will happen for birthing women in the Sugar Land area once all the construction is done.

No matter what kind of birth you are planning on having, you will need to be prepared to advocate for yourself. Birth Boot Camp classes are wonderful for preparing couples to have an amazing birth. I teach these 10 week childbirth classes in Sugar Land on a regular basis. Check my website for upcoming class dates.