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Ask the Expert: Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center

Sep 30, 2019 06:11PM ● By Fredericksburg Parent Staff

spots logo color 2017Pregnancy is an exciting and busy time. Knowing that a strong safety net exists in the event of an emergency medical situation can go a long way toward easing stress and helping parents-to-be enjoy the baby showers and sleep-filled nights leading up to baby’s arrival. Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center now has obstetrics (OB) hospitalists on staff 24/7 as part of its regular Emergency Department. That means that any woman who comes to the hospital with an OB-related emergency will get expert care in the hospital’s OB Emergency Department. As our October Expert, Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center tells us more about this enhancement to maternal care in the Fredericksburg region. After you read the article, stay tuned to the Fredericksburg Parent and Family Facebook page to catch a live interview that will help you learn more about this new offering at the hospital.

Q: When will OB hospitalists be available at Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center?

SRMC: They are available now. OB hospitalists began 24/7 availability at the hospital in late September.

Q: What is a hospitalist?

SRMC: Hospitalists are physicians who focus solely on caring for patients in the hospital, rather than those in a clinical or outpatient setting. OB hospitalists are specialists whose primary role is to care for pregnant women when they arrive at hospital in an emergency situation. They work in tandem with a patient’s own OB/GYN, so even if a woman’s regular doctor isn’t able to be at her bedside 24/7, our OB hospitalists are here 24/7 and will constantly relay information to the primary OB.

Q: Why did Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center decide to bring in round-the-clock OB hospitalists?

SRMC: It’s really about peace of mind. No mother should have to worry about what would happen if she went into labor or had a medical emergency arise in the middle of the night, or on a holiday. We want parents-to-be—and the clinical OB/GYN’s who care for them—to rest easy knowing that there are highly trained physicians who specialize in OB emergency care ready at all hours here at Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center. These round-the-clock hospitalists are partners in this care and maintain close contact with patients’ regular doctors.

ready for babyIt’s our goal to provide the best personalized care for mothers and babies during pregnancy, labor, delivery and the postpartum period. We already have an amazing OB team. Our intimate, 10-bed OB unit draws praise from new parents for its spacious rooms, and the fact that we keep you in one comfortable room for your entire stay here at the hospital. We also have a Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to care for premature babies and high-risk newborns. The addition of having OB hospitalists available 24/7 enhances this experience by letting us focus on outstanding care for moms and babies in emergency situations. Hospitalist care has been growing nationwide over the past decade, and studies have found that having hospitalists on-board can reduce the number of perinatal safety events, and even reduce the number of caesarean deliveries.

Q: How do I access OB hospitalists? Do I need to come to a specific part of the hospital?

SRMC: You just need to come to our Emergency Room. Women who come to the ER with OB medical emergencies are taken to our OB triage area to receive care from our hospitalists. The hospitalists are available 24/7, so no matter when you need to visit Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center, you can rest assured you’ll be in the care of a highly trained OB/GYN.

Q: Will the OB hospitalists communicate with my own OB/GYN?

SRMC: Absolutely. The OB hospitalist will touch base with your doctor as soon as they know you are at Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center. The hospitalists in no way replace the important relationship a pregnant mother has with her OB/GYN. Good clinical prenatal care is critical to a healthy pregnancy, and we urge parents-to-be to seek this out. OB hospitalists provide an enhanced safety net that ensures you’ll never be without top-notch OB care at Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center—no matter what time of day or what day of the week you come to us. The OB hospitalists will be able to connect with a patient’s doctor to explain what is happening, why the mother-to-be is in the hospital and whether she will need to be admitted.

Q: What if I am early in my pregnancy and I don’t yet have an OB/GYN?

SRMC: Statistics show that 51 percent of mothers in the millennial generation do not have an OB/GYN before they get pregnant, so this is not uncommon. The OB hospitalists at Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center are here 24/7 to provide mothers-to-be and their babies the best level of care at all hours of the day. New moms can call our Consult-a-Nurse line at (888) 685-1610 to get a list of OB/GYNs in our area.

If you are newly pregnant, we highly recommend checking out the website nopregnancyisperfect.com. You can find videos where couples tell their real-life birth stories, as well as week-by-week information about your pregnancy. If you have an Amazon Echo, enable our new Alexa skill, “40 weeks,” which offers interactive answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about pregnancy and birth.

Q: Can OB hospitalists provide post-partum care?

incubatorSRMC: Yes, in fact they are specially trained to be able to ask the questions needed to effectively treat postpartum issues if a mom with these needs comes to the hospital in an emergency. We do stress that the postpartum period is an important time for new mothers to stay in close touch with their own OB/GYN about how they are feeling and any issues they may be having. Supporting maternal and infant health in our community means we have to care for mothers throughout the postpartum period, and that is important to us at Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center.

Q: I’m newly pregnant with my first baby! How can I prepare?

We welcome all parents expecting a child to come visit us as they make plans for baby’s arrival. Visit our website at spotsrmc.com to learn about labor and delivery tours, or search for upcoming classes on breastfeeding, labor, baby basics and other topics. These free classes are taught by our certified nurses and midwives. Visit spotsrmc.com to register for a tour or class, or call our Consult-A-Nurse line at (888) 685-1610.

We want all of our expecting families to have the confidence that comes with knowledge and the availability of round-the-clock, top-notch obstetric care. We are here to support you as you navigate this journey.

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