Sanford Birth Center

Birthplanning

Pregnancy is a time of physical and emotional changes. You may feel happy, worried, excited and even fearful. Having a baby changes your life. The birth planners at Sanford Birth Center will help you prepare for and understand the choices you have for labor, delivery and postpartum.

Birth planners are registered nurses who will meet with you privately, after 36 weeks of pregnancy, to discuss your educational and childbirth needs.

Components of the birth plan session:

• Complete pre-registration to Sanford Health
• Review your birth experience desires
• Complete admission forms to labor and delivery
• Tour of Sanford Birth Center at Sanford Health
• Opportunity to discuss your fear and concerns and ask questions to an experienced caring registered nurse.

Birth planning sessions are scheduled for 30—45 minute time slots between the following hours:

• 8—11 a.m. and 1—3 p.m. Monday—Friday
• 8 a.m.—5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday

Please come and visit or call at any time. We are happy to answer your questions.

Lactation counselors

Lactation counselors are nurses who provide support and assistance to breastfeeding mothers. They encourage the initiation and continuation of breastfeeding, offering suggestions and tips as needed. These nurses also counsel new mothers to help prevent breastfeeding problems at the beginning, and throughout their breastfeeding experience. At Sanford Birth Center there is always a lactation counselor available.

Car seat purchase program

Now you can buckle your baby in right, thanks to the Infant car seat program at Sanford Birth Center. North Dakota law requires children from birth to age four be secured in a car seat.

Sanford Birth Center's car seat (with base) may be used for babies up to 20 pounds. There is a charge of $44 per seat if you deliver at Sanford Health. The car seat is then yours to keep.

Parents interested in buying a car seat may do so before delivery if they are pre-registered at Sanford Health. Parents must view a video on car seat safety before taking a car seat home.

Car seats may be purchased during birth plan sessions. Please call (701) 323-6598 to make an appointment.

To view the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration car safety guidelines click here.

BAMBBE

BAMBBE (Baby and Mother Beyond Birth Education) program is a home follow-up program in which a registered nurse will come to your home to visit with you and do a nursing assessment on you and your new baby. If you are unsure about needing a home visit, the BAMBBE nurse can just call to see if you have questions once you are home.

The goal of this visit is to assure the health and well-being of both mother and baby. During the visit, the nurse will, for instance, weigh your baby, check the cord and do a general check-up of your baby. There is no charge and it is strictly voluntary on your part.

If you have problems or questions, please feel free to call us any time day or night at
(701) 323-6598. Or you can call Bismarck Burleigh Public Health at (701) 355-1540 or Custer Health Unit at (701) 667-3370.

In addition, a Sanford Birth Center nurse will make a follow-up phone call to see if you have any questions.

Well Baby Clinic

A Well Baby Clinic is offered 1—4 p.m. every Tuesday (except holidays) and from 5—7 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month.

The clinic is located at Sanford Birth Center, on the 5^th floor of the Sanford Medical Center (using elevator C).

No appointments are needed. Just stop by during the clinic hours and a registered nurse will weigh your baby and answer any questions you may have.

This is an opportunity for you to join us for an educational experience that will benefit your baby as well as your family. Attending a Well Baby Clinic allows you to meet other families with babies, too.

Call us at (701) 323-6580 or (800) 732-7126.

Circumcision

Circumcision is the removal of a small amount of foreskin from the end of the penis. For pain control during the procedure, lidocaine block is injected in the area and a sucrose solution is given to the baby orally.

No special care is required after the circumcision is healed.

First 72 hours:

A vaseline gauze is placed at the end of the penis to prevent it from sticking to the diaper

To clean, rinse the circumcized area with warm water. After it is healed your baby may go into the tub if the umbilical cord has fallen off.

There should be no bleeding. The head of the penis may become white or yellowish looking as it heals. This is normal—do not try to wipe it off.

Call your doctor if you notice any increased redness, swelling, tenderness or bleeding.

Care of uncircumcised baby:

Best advice is to just leave it alone.

Wash and rinse daily, using just soap and water.

DO NOT retract foreskin. Forcing the foreskin back may harm the penis, causing pain, bleeding and possibly scar tissue.

The natural separation of the foreskin from the tip of the penis may take several years.

When the boy is older, three to five years, he can learn to pull back the foreskin and clean under it daily.

Phototherapy

Phototherapy is a treatment given to newborns who have a condition known as jaundice. Jaundice is common in newborn babies. It is caused by build up of a yellow-brown pigment called bilirubin, which is found in the blood and skin. No medical treatment is needed in most cases. It usually improves in four to five days.

Babies with higher amounts of bilirubin in their blood may require phototherapy treatment. The baby is placed under special fluorescent lights that help bilirubin to be absorbed.

During phototherapy:

• The baby is undressed so that as much of the skin as possible is exposed to the light.
• The baby is put into an enclosed plastic crib (incubator) with a heat control to maintain the correct body temperature.
• The baby's eyes are covered to protect the nerve layer at the back of the eye from the bright light. The baby needs to be fed on a regular schedule. There is usually no need to stop breastfeeding.

The baby's bilirubin will be measured daily.

If your baby becomes more yellow after you've gone home, call your baby's doctor.

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