Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women offers an array of services, including Obstetrics/Gynecology, Fertility, Genetics, Maternal & Fetal Medicine, Labor & Delivery, NICU, Female Pelvic care, and Menopause care.
Labor & Delivery
This is a fairly new (within the last 5 years) development to the Texas Children’s Hospital Network. They have their own dedicated space and care center for labor and delivery and we are all about it! Many midwives have partnered with Texas Children’s Pavilion to provide their patients the utmost care for their birthing experience. Midwives are able to be with their patients the entire time they give birth in the hospital setting, should an emergency arise, and still have a licensed OB on call if needed. This gives birthing moms the peace of mind while still all0wing them to birth how they wish. This includes minimal intervention, support from their midwife and the backup option of a doctor on call at a facility who is ready to handle their care, should it escalate.
I love how they state that “you can request natural services to make the birthing process more comfortable, including birthing balls, breathing techniques, massage, hydrotherapy and music.” Having delivered 4 children myself, I know the difference a calm and soothing setting can make while laboring. Their care here is top notch and really hones in on providing a positive Mother, Baby & Family bonding environment.
NICU @ Texas Children’s Pavilion
The NICU has 32 patient care rooms at their state of the art facility. Four of these rooms are designed to accommodate multiples and all of the rooms are fitted with breast pumps and pull out beds so that parents can stay 24/7 with their precious little one/s. Texas Children’s Pavilion is a believer in Kangaroo Care which is a special way of holding your baby, skin to skin. The name comes from the way a Kangaroo carries her baby in her pouch and can provide bonding time and help your baby thrive. If you don’t know about it, these are some of the important things to understand, according to their staff:
What are the benefits of Kangaroo Care for my baby?
- Helps keep heart rate, breathing and temperature stable
- Mother’s skin can warm baby two times faster than an incubator (no studies yet with fathers)
- Oxygen in the blood is often improved and steady
- Breathing pauses (apnea) are decreased by up to four times
- Calms babies – so less crying, more security, less stress
- Improves sleep
- Less risk of bleeding into the premature brain from delicate blood vessels
- Better emotional development
- Sensations help brain develop through sensory experiences that include smell, taste, touch, hearing and movement
- The infant is upright and tucked, similar to being in the womb, which helps the spine learn to balance while increasing muscle tone
- Skin-to-skin contact naturally leads to breastfeeding, which can usually start sooner
- Feeding tolerance is improved
- Age-specific breast milk is produced for the baby
- Faster weight gain
- Babies go home earlier; smaller babies are discharged up to 50% sooner
- Strengthens immune system so babies have fewer infections
To learn more on the NICU care at Texas Children’s Pavilion, click here.
Maternal & Fetal Medicine
The Pavilion at Texas Children’s in Houston is known for their specialized care in MFM. Here is a list of some of the most used services they offer for MFM:
- Obstetrical imaging – BCM MFM ultrasound and Fetal and Maternal MRI
- Genetic counseling and screening by BCM Prenatal Genetics
- Consultative and total obstetrical care by BCM MFM
- Adult Congenital Heart Obstetrical Clinic
- Fetal ECHO diagnostics and consultation by Texas Children’s Heart Center®
- Nutritional consultation by certified diabetes educators
- The Program for Multiples
- Texas Children’s Fetal Center® consultation and care
- Social work and child life consultation
- Palliative care counseling
If you have been referred to this facility, you can rest assured you are in great hands!
Female Pelvic Care @ Texas Children’s Pavilion
This is one of those healthcare topics that I do not think gets enough praise and education. Your body takes on a tremendous amount of stress, changes, and let’s be honest, destruction when pregnant and after giving birth. They say it takes 6 weeks to “heal” but if you’ve given birth before, you know this is just fooey! 😉 One of the best things I can suggest to do before, during, and especially after, is to get some Pelvic Floor Therapy. This ensures you are keeping and maintaining the strength of your pelvic floor to prevent and heal your uterus, bladder, and anal structures. Ain’t nobody got time for peeing and pooping their pants. That’s the baby’s role, not yours! All kidding aside, pelvic therapy was the best investment (time and cost wise) I could have given myself, postpartum.
After giving birth 4 times, I truly know what a toll it can take on your body. Detailed medical care for you during pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum are essential in having a good prenatal and postnatal experience. For more valuable research and true life experience, head on over to some other blogs I have written. If you are looking to document that new precious baby and your growing family, I am a specialized family and motherhood photographer based in Houston Texas.
Other blogs you need to peruse;
3 Best Houston Prenatal Yoga Spots
