SMC unveils renovated labor & delivery suites
Officials with Shenandoah Medical Center have unveiled a new upgrade to the hospital’s labor and delivery area.
Last week, SMC hosted an open house for its renovated labor and delivery suites, which are designed to cover labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum needs for mothers and families. Dr. Martee MacLeod-Kozal is an OB/GYN at SMC. She says the updated suites bring a new feel to the area.
“We’re excited, because I think if you walk into our rooms now, you will see the same thing you would see if you were in the city,” said MacLeod-Kozal. “We opened up the rooms a little bit and added whirlpool tubs for people who want to labor in the bathtub — which is a really great option for us. We added flatscreen smart TVs and refrigerators, as well as new colors to brighten it up.”
For expecting families, MacLeod-Kozal says there are advantages to delivering locally.
“The obvious thing that comes to mind is that you don’t have to travel,” said MacLeod-Kozal. “That’s a big deal if you have to go an hour or more away, especially in winter months. I think it’s great that we can also coordinate care with your pediatrician and primary care or family practice doctor that’s here in this area. It makes it easier for patients to have all their care in one area and not be running to multiple appointments.”
In addition to the updated suites, SMC’s women’s health team is able to use an upgraded fetal monitoring system to make labor and delivery as smooth as possible.
“We use a system called Pericalm,” said MacLeod-Kozal. “The great thing about Pericalm is it allows both in-room monitoring, as well as remotely. So, the nurses can watch it in the room with the patient, from the nurses’ station, I can see it from my office when I’m in clinic and I can also see it from home on the computer. So that gives you good reassurance. It also has things built within the system that alert if things aren’t following the correct curves or vital signs. It also draws a lot of that information into the patient’s electronic medical record, so that the nurses save time charting and spend more time on direct patient care.”
MacLeod-Kozal says individual tours of the new facilities are available by appointment. She also says SMC offers free childbirth classes for expecting families.
“We offer childbirth classes once a month on the third Tuesday of every month from 5:30-7:30 p.m.,” said MacLeod-Kozal. “You can contact us to sign up for those. They are actually free, so we encourage especially first-time parents to take advantage of those classes. It takes a lot of the anxiety out of going into labor.”
For more information on the classes, or to schedule an appointment, call (712) 246-7400
