Having a baby in Austin (Lakeway, Center: pros and cons, live in, lawsuits)

[acar]

Hi, we are having a baby and are new to the area. We are looking at hospitals/drs.

We live in the Lakeway area. I saw a dr. who delivers at South Austin Hospital (on 290 - I think it is a St. David's facility)?

Loved the dr. but I haven't heard much about that hospital.

Any ideas both pros and cons on hospitals and/or doctors?

Thanks!

[sunshineshallow]

I gave birth to my first son in Austin, at Austin Area Birthing Center, midwives! Loved the esperience, the people and the whole thing!

[fallof09]

South Austin hospital is pro medical intervention and has a higher c-section rate because of it. I guess it depends on what you are looking for.
I am having a Bradley vbac at Seton SW (with the choice of S.A. or SSW), and from what I have been told (from a very reliable source), they will leave you alone if that is what you specify in your birth plan and they have better section stats. It all depends on your labor/birth preferences as to which doctor/hospital will be a better fit for you. If you DM me I will give you some other details that I should not post in a public forum.

Honestly, if I weren't having an HMO covered vbac, I would do a homebirth. There are amazing midwives here.

[Exiled Texan]

Fallof09-

I was considering a VBAC with my second. Never went into labor before our "deadline." When they sliced me open, my uterus was completely ruptured at the spot of my old c-section scar. The baby was being held in by my amniotic fluid sac. My OB just said, "I'm glad you water didn't break or we would have been dealing with a fatality." I was literally running for a bus the day before with a 9 pound baby in my belly.

Also, DON'T induce labor with a VBAC. My best friend's sister had pitocin and ruptured. Scary emergency C resulted. She lost her uterus.

FWIW- my second C-section was much better recovery wise than my first.

I think you should try for the VBAC, but do it in an OR.

Just my cents.

[MJinAustin]

I had two babies at North Austin Med Ctr and while that is probably too far from you, I just want to say that you should have your birthing plan in place and have your spouse/parent insist that the docs stick to it. Be really clear with your doc up front about what your expectations are for the birth. If you want a low-lit, quiet room, then express that...because they will just take over and you really can't do anything about it while you're in labor!

I have mixed feelings about birthing centers as opposed to hospitals simply for the possibility of emergencies. My first had unexpected birth defects that needed to be looked at immediately and at least at North Austin, I was able to be with her and feed her (just in NICU) and I really did find the nurses to be caring and supportive in the wake of the emotional roller coaster.

I really think that there are docs out there that will adhere to your requests if you interview them and make your wants clear. A friend of mine had a doula at the hospital with her, so she sort of did both - she had a calming force and a doc in case of emergencies. Some docs though, don't like doulas as I think some see them as annoyances who get in the way. All you have to do is interview the doc and see what their reaction is to an alternative birth method and you'll have your answer to how they feel!

My dad's a doc though and I know that some hospitals do have a tendency to go straight to C-section when there are any hints of complications...a result of malpractice lawsuits.

[Trainwreck20]

Somewhere (maybe on here?) I saw that Midwives are not allowed to be in charge of the birth at ADC in north Austin and that the Dr. would only get involved in the case of an emergency. Now I have to go find the article.....

aha!

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/07/16/0716midwife.html (broken link)