Does anyone have any experience with Kaiser Oakland Hospital's maternity ward? When I gave birth to our first child, they did not have this facility open for birthing. We had a choice of Alta Bates or Kaiser Walnut Creek. We chose Walnut Creek, which was fine. They have nice facilities and midwives on staff. This time around however we may want to use a maternity ward closer to home since we'll have to arrange for care for our first child during delivery. We'll of course be going on a L&D tour but if anyone has any experience with KP-Oakland, we'd be most appreciative. anonymous

Childbirth at Kaiser - where to deliver?

Up until my 25-week appointment today, we have been planning on switching from Kaiser Oakland to Walnut Creek for the labor and delivery, so we could have a midwife at the birth. Well, lo and behold, at our appointment the doctor told us that Walnut Creek is not accepting new transfers now because they are too full. She said we could transfer to Hayward if we want a midwife.

So does anyone have any recent experience at Hayward? I know nothing about it. Advice from 2001 on the website is mostly positive but it says there are no private rooms and midwives are only there 8am-8pm M-F... has that changed at all?

Are there other, better Kaisers we could switch to? Could we transfer to San Rafael from Oakland? And what is L&D like there?

I was excited about Walnut Creek's midwives, mostly, but also about bigger rooms (we plan to have quite a support team, plus our 3-year-old and someone to watch him for part of the time) and the fact that they are installing labor tubs. I don't need to have a tub, but I want to be somewhere where it will be comfy to have my 3-5 people with me, where they will be fine with a natural, unmedicated birth with as few interventions as possible, and where I can have a private room.

Thanks in advance! Jen

The last information I have about tubs at Walnut Creek is that installation has been placed on hold due to the need to upgrade electric wiring in the location that they will be placed. San Rafael does not have a Labor and Delivery service. Locations besides Walnut Creek with CNM services include Santa Rosa, Hayward, Redwood City (currently only at night and weekends- they have CNM openings that need to be filled), Vallejo (M- F 7am-7pm), South Sac, Sac (sporatic coverage), and Santa Teresa. I believe Hayward CNMs are covering L and D 24/7. You can call L and D and ask to speak with the on-call midwife at any facility to confirm current CNM coverage. The CNM chiefs are working on a web page that will give everyone the ability to learn more about our services but that will not be ready for a while. We will also have a phone number for each service at that time. I will continue to monitor this site to answer questions as they arise. I hope this information is helpful! Thanks, Kathy Heilig, CNM. Co-chair, CNM Chiefs, Kaiser Northern CA

My next child was delivered in 2003 at Walnut Creek. My baby again went into distress, they wheeled me into the operating room, after 3 hours of pushing hard, and I was told that if the baby did not come out in the next 10 minutes they would push her back up and give me the C section. She did come out. They did not have the right needle yet she stiched me up anyway. The thread broke later. In my room nursing my beautiful daughter in recovery my husband thought she was breathing hard, nurse said she seemed fine but would check. Off to the NIC unit for a week due to breathing problems. I boarded there (if they have empty rooms you can stay on which is a huge blessing). I went in every 3 hours and was able to breastfeed her within a few days. Most of the shift care was amazing. Wonderful, considerate nurturing nurses. The 2 am shift does not seem to have a doctor on rounds. It was loud in there. The manager yelled from one end of the room to the next, a nurse put a radio really loud next to an 5 month old who kept crying, and the topper was the nurse who said ' stop crying or I will throw you in the trash'. I kid you not. I chose not to report the staff until we were out ( she was in a week).

I was told that the manager was fired, yet I heard from another manager that she was transfered. I sent a complaint to the Chief of the hospital who later forwarded it back to the head of NIC who heard my original complaint. She wanted me to come in so that she could reasure me that it was all better. She was also upset that the complaint I sent to the Chief 'passed through a lot of hands before it got to her.' So, there it is, my experience at Walnut Creek. In hindsight I think it would have been a great choice to have a doula who would have had the experience to shepard us through the experience. I do want to add that I have had a great many positive experiences with Kaiser but this was not one. Anon

My first child is due in early December, and I'm trying to decide whether to deliver at Kaiser Walnut Creek, Oakland or Hayward. I've toured Walnut Creek and Oakland, and liked Walnut Creek much better--both the physical space and the midwife, natural-birth-oriented approach. But at a check-up today my nurse told me that Walnut Creek is overcrowded and I may get turned away. She suggested that I check out Hayward, which also has midwife births and which has apparently recently been remodeled. I'm wondering if any mothers who've given birth at any of these places recently can comment on their experiences. The previous postings I've found on BPN about Kaiser Walnut Creek and Hayward are quite a few years out of date. Thanks! Erica

Kaiser midwifery coverage is 24/7 in a number of our No. Cal medical centers including Hayward and Walnut Creek. There are no midwives in medical centers with large OBGYN residencies except for Sacramento where there is part-time CNM coverage.

Walnut Creek is very busy these days but you can deliver there as long as there is an open bed when you go into labor. It is rare that a client is asked to deliver in a location other than the one she planned on. It does happen, however, so it is important to call the Labor and Delivery unit before you leave for the hospital.

Walnut Creek asks that women who receive prenatal care elsewhere transfer their care to WC around 35 weeks so they can plan and staff for your delivery. An extra midwife has been added to the WC staff through December as they anticipate a sustained baby boom there through the end of the year.

Hayward has a wonderful midwifery service. If you are uncertain where you want to deliver, I would recommend taking a tour of the facilities on your list. I hope you all find this information helpful. Thanks and take care, Kathy Heilig, CNM Kathy

Delivering at new Kaiser Oakland vs. Walnut Creek

Hello all! We are due in January and as Kaiser patients have the choice of where to deliver. I've heard that Kaiser Oakland L&D is staffed by mostly interns, whereas Kaiser Walnut Creek is primarily staffed by CNM's. We are hoping for a natural birth, and would welcome hearing about any and all experiences relating to delivery at the new Kaiser Oakland facility vs. Walnut Creek. Thank you in advance for your reply! Yvonne

I'll probably deliver there, just because I don't want to get stuck in traffic going to Walnut Creek, but I'd be very interested in hearing about more recent Oakland birth experiences. Irene

I'm a Kaiser patient and I have been in prenatal care since October. There is a lot of confusion at the moment about the question in which hospital Kaiser patients have their babies and what role Alta Bates plays in this. It took me about 20 phone calls to find out, but these seem to be the facts:

Every Kaiser patient has the right to get care at every Kaiser facility anywhere in the US. It doesn't matter where you live. For example, I live in Berkeley but I got my prenatal care at Kaiser SF because it was more convenient - the SF Kaiser hospital happens to be in a walking distance from my workplace. So if you decide to have your prenatal care and deliviery at Kaiser Walnut Creek, that's okay regardless of where you live.

Kaiser would like you to have your baby in the same place in which you have obtained your prenatal care. For SF, Walnut Creek etc. that is not a problem - you just deliver at the hospital at which you got your care before. For Kaiser patients of Richmond and Oakland, delivery is no longer possible at these hospitals and will usually happen at Alta Bates in Berkeley instead.

It is, however, possible to have your baby at a different hospital if you go through some paperwork beforehand. This is what I will do - I've stopped working now, so I no longer drive to SF regularly, and I want to have my baby at Alta Bates because that's closer to my home. This was clearly not Kaiser's "preferred method", but in the end all I had to do was to make sure that the records about my prenatal care got faxed over to the East Bay after my last prenatal appointment in SF.

This DOES work, and I think the same must be possible the other way around (a woman who got her prenatal care at Oakland Kaiser should still be able to deliver at Walnut Creek as long as she sorts out the paperwork beforehand and gets a referral from her doctor). I hope this helps. Good luck, Angela

Has anyone given birth at Kaiser Hayward? I am at the point of chosing health insurance and this is one option. ANY info appreciated. Thanks paula

Does anyone have any experience with Kaiser Oakland Hospital's maternity ward? When I gave birth to our first child, they did not have this facility open for birthing. We had a choice of Alta Bates or Kaiser Walnut Creek. We chose Walnut Creek, which was fine. They have nice facilities and midwives on staff. This time around however we may want to use a maternity ward closer to home since we'll have to arrange for care for our first child during delivery. We'll of course be going on a L&D tour but if anyone has any experience with KP-Oakland, we'd be most appreciative. anonymous

I ended up having a c-section and thought the team we had was amazing. Very positive, supportive and skilled. I was impressed at how they treated the birth as the special occasion it was, the weren't at all jaded like the doctor and nurses I had the first time around at Alta Bate. My twins totalled 15 pounds and I had a rough and painful recovery. The nurses were fantastic; they were responsive to my needs and worked to find ways for me to get relief. We were there for 4 days and although I was ready to go home, I was sad to leave. anon

Please bear with me, this is yet again, another search (albeit one for more recent aka. 2006) for advice on Kaiser's L&D - our first baby was born at WC - good experience but nothing so stellar, our second is due in a few weeks and we're looking at Oakland to be closer to home - whatever your experiences with the Oakland facility (and/or vs. WC or Hayward) would be MOST appreciated - specifically, quality of care, access to private room, thoughts on residents/vs. midwives in terms of respecting your wishes and general asetetics... curious about new l&d...

I'm looking for recent childbirth experiences at either Kaiser Oakland or Vallejo. The most up-to-date ones I could find in the archives for Oakland were over a year old, and I couldn't find anything on Vallejo. If you received prenatal care and/or delivered at either facility in the past 6-12 months, would you mind sharing your experience (and any recommendations for NPs or MDs)? If you have your own doula, does that work within either facility? Thanks
Choosing between Kaisers

The only thing that I didn't like about my experience there was the birth preparation class. I'm sorry that I don't remember the instructor's name, but she was awful. She talked about herself the whole time and was just a ditz! We signed up for the class where we attended once a week for a few weeks. Each class got progressively worse, but we kept going because we were afraid to miss something! The last class was taught by a substitute instructor named Joan Bryant. She was amazing!! She is also a doula and she was so wonderful. She answered all of our questions and gave us some good tips that were actually useful to us during the birth.

Good luck and have a wonderful pregnancy/birth! nm

We went in with our expressed intention to have as few interventions as possible, and the staff and doctors were very supportive of this. At no time did a doctor or nurse walk in and say, ''so, are you ready for your epidural now?'' Things didn't go as we had planned -- my contractions were close together, painful, and my labor was slow (typcial with first labors). I wound up opting for pitosin and an epidural, but up until then, both doctors and nurses were very supportive and offered suggestions for different techniques and positions. I had great coaching from one of the nurses (named DL) when it came time to push. Our little one was born with her hand by her face, so I wound up having some pretty significant tearing (unanticipated -- up until then it looked like I'd have no tearing). The doctors did a nice job sewing me up, and the doctor who delivered us came by the next morning to check on us, saying she hadn't been able to sleep because she was worried about me (until then I hadn't realized how bad my tear was). Our little one also swalllowed miconium, and there were two pediatricians on hand to help with her post birth.

Kaiser Oakland is unusal and unique in the Kaiser system (at least in NoCal) in that it's a teaching hospital on both the ob.gyn side and on the pediatric side. The residents in labor and delivery work in teams of three. The current crop are all female, competent, and pleasant to deal with(and TV good looking, I'll add, in every size, shape, and color). Our labor was long, so we had an opportunity to meet many of them.

The labor and delivery rooms were nice enough, private, quite, with a shower but no tub. We could control the lighting, the temp, etc. They all have a tv with a DVD player. In recovery, we were in the family care unit, which has singles, doubles, and triples. We lucked out and had a double to ourselves for most of the time there. We asked about how singles are doled out and it's first come first serve, although one nurse commented that the singles were for C Sections and ''emotional cases.'' The pediatric residents were also very cool. The nursing staff in the family care unit is great, and offered useful tips on breastfeeding and other things. We had a daytime nurse named Laura who we loved.

I have to say that I find a lot of the comments about Kaiser Oakland to be somewhat offensive, and wonder how much of this is socio-economic. I find Kaiser Oakland to be delightfully diverse, and also just a great place to get care. There is a ''meet the doctors'' orientation session that's held weekly, and I'd urge you to go to this -- they will happily answer any questions you have. If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch! Merrilee

Here's why I was delighted with them: My water broke and my contractions were not starting naturally within their ''legally allotted'' time frame. The nurses encouraged me to come in, but were never rude about it, and then when I checked in they were very friendly and accommodating about allowing us to try to get labor started naturally. I ended up with pitosin, which I was not happy about (I have a huge fear of intravenous needles etc), but the attending OB was totally open about listening to my fears and discussing how they wanted to administer it (I requested that they give it to me slowly, having attended a birth (not at Kaiser) where it was not administered slowly, which led to a brutally difficult delivery). D.L., our nurse, rocked. She was fantastic. My husband and our friend were coaching me, and D.L. checked in periodically, always at the right time. She made sure I was not attached to too many wires and tubes, she made great suggestions about ways to manage labor, and she made the key suggestion that got me through without anaesthesia: putting me in the shower. And then she convinced the resident who delivered our girl (Dr. Karen Maloney) to check my progress *while I was in the shower.* The two of them did not make me move to a bed, which would have been a lot more comfortable for Dr. Maloney. Now, if I had been at a non-teaching hospital with doctors established in their ways, I am betting this would never have happened. Also worth noting - Dr. Maloney is an osteopath.

The staff was incredibly caring, they checked up on us the next day and came by to snuggle the baby, and we really made a human connection with them. Post-partum, equally good. I'm rambling on here, but I'd also like to tell you that we met our doctor's pediatrician during our two day stay. (Dr. Anjana Ray at Richmond Pediatrics, which is worth checking out. She was the attending at the hospital while we were there. Her practice was full but when we asked she agreed to take us in.) Another thing you should know -- Kaiser Oakland averages about seven births a day. They are not a baby factory, which we really liked. After hearing birth stories from other area hospitals, we always feel like we made a great decision
another happy Kaiser Oakland mom

[Editor]a review was also received for Vallejo - see below

I'm due to deliver baby #2 at Kaiser Oakland sometime in the next 5-10 weeks. #1 was also a Kaiser baby, but delivered at Alta Bates. I had a terrible initial experience at Alta Bates in that we requested a private room, but were put in a FOUR person room! I've never been more miserable. It's VERY important to me this go-around to get a private room and I have to know how likely that is at Kaiser Oakland? Who do I need to know? I'm not above bribery, I just need to know who to schmooze (I'm kidding...a little). In all, I'm a happy Kaiser patient, but still wondering what to expect at the new maternity ward I need my sleep!

I just found out today that Kaiser WC is no longer taking referrals from Kaiser Oakland for labor/delivery. I delivered my first child in Kaiser WC with a midwife and had exactly the birth I'd hoped for and didn't have to fight for it. We used a midwife and had an unmedicalized experience--no drugs were even offered. I had planned to go there again with #2, but was told today that that is no longer an option as of a few weeks ago. I'm so disappointed and sad and worried that I'll have a completely medicalized, unsupportive birth experience (I'm due this summer) and that I'll have to fight to have the birth experience I want. There are only a handful of experiences on the archives. Can anyone share their more recent experiences? Am I worrying needlessly?
Mom hoping for an unmedicalized birth

A few notable things about the Kaiser Oakland facility- 1- they're moving towards becoming a ''mother-baby'' hospital (I believe its called) which means that they do what they can to encourage the contact between mother and baby among other things. For example, Kaiser Oakland does not have a ''well-baby nursery'' so unless there is a medical reason to take them from you, the baby won't leave your side (beneficial to them financially too but who cares!). 2- they have a corridor along the outside of the post-delivery rooms which enables your guests to visit without having to stand in your room the whole time or out in the medical area getting in the way of doctors and nurses. 3- they have versitle beds with squat bars that allow you deliver in many ways other than lying flat on your back which is great for a medication free birth!

4- is my personal experience: I ended up having to schedule a c-section and I could not have been more amazed by my experience. The all-female staff was so friendly and nice that they put me very at ease. Not only did they not take my baby away from me immediately after the birth, but they actually offered to let me breastfeed on the operating table while I was being put back together. The baby NEVER left my side and the anesthesiologist held my baby over my chest for about 15 or 20 minutes while she nursed. I can't tell you how much that meant to me after having had a previous c-section at a different facility where I got to look at my baby for about 15 seconds and then was wheeled into a post-op room to recover (alone) for about 4 hours- no breastfeeding, no eye contact, and my husband wasn't even allowed to come in to see me.

All in all, I had a wonderful experience at Kaiser Oakland. I didn't get the opportunity to use my doula for my attempt at a VBAC, but in the tour it was made known that the birth could be what I wanted it to be- you just needed to know what you wanted.

I think you will be fine- I wouldn't be too disappointed about having to deliver at Kaiser oakland- Its a great place.

Good luck with your delivery- I hope its everything you want it to be. Kaiser Oakland Fan

I had a baby at Kaiser Oakland last June and it was a good experience. I was not as ''unmediacalized'' as you want, but then I had a high risk pregnancy and had to have my baby a month early. (She is doing great!) Mary Ellin

Our baby never left us, we didn't get almost all of the ''standard '' tests/needles/blood draws. We told the hospital we wanted to go home and they told us we could leave anytime but before 12 hours we'd have to sign some waiver so we just waited the 12 hours. The nurses on the floor basically left us alone and the nurse who was on as we were closing in on the 12 hrs got us the wheelchair and got us all ready and said it would be 12 hours by the time we were pulling out of the parking lot basically, so I feel she was helping us to get home asap within the parameters of their allowable time.

Anyway-I felt we were so lucky with the resident and nurse who provided our primary care and we had a wonderful birth and have a great son. Melanie

Another post mentioned the corrider along the outside of the building. I personally found it to be a misuse of space. It must face a westerly or southerly direction because it gets unbelievably hot in there in the afternoons when the sun shines (and as a result the rooms on that side also heat up - I was using the air conditioning, even though it was at most in the upper 50s outside). In addition, it is strewn with extra chairs from the rooms because the rooms are so small. As a result, there isn't room there for new mommies to walk with their babies in their bassinets (my only option since my husband wasn't around much due to issues of his own and I wasn't about to leave my baby alone in the room), so I had to walk in the main corrider and contribute to the chaos there, getting in the way of medical staff who were trying to do their jobs. (Speaking of the main corrider - most of it is lined with desks/counter space and even stand-alone tables where the nurses (mostly) do some of their work. It is cramped and noisy; medical records lie all over the place, or are being displayed on computer screens. Not exactly private.)

Another problem with walking in the main corrider with your baby is the alarm system. I appreciate the unfortunate need for having babies tagged so they cannot be removed from the facility without ''permission'', but the system is set to be extremely sensitive. I was told that if I walked by the elevators and doors with my baby while either was open, that the alarm would go off, so I made a point of walking by that area as quickly as I could, which admittedly wasn't very fast at first. A staff member walked up behind me at one point and opened the door and guess what, my baby set off the alarm. Surely the staff members are aware of this issue and could wait an extra five seconds to be sure they don't set off the alarm. I didn't even know the person was behind me. Anyway, once the alarm goes off, it is not only surely annoying to staff and patients alike to hear the thing blaring loudly, but it also requires that my baby's nurse turn it off (persumably she would be the one to ''verify'' that everything was ok). So, I hated walking in the main corrider because I felt like I was in the way (which I was) and because of the alarm issue. And I would have hated walking in the outer corrider, had there been room, because of the heat.

I definitely did not like having my baby taken for the hearing test/vaccination(s?)/etc. Part of the reason for this is that I simply don't even know what was done. I don't know how long the absence lasted, but it seemed like forever; I had even asked my husband if it didn't seem excessively long for what we thought was happening. The baby's picture was also taken at that time, and then offered for sale. That is all well and good - in fact we planned ahead of time to buy the pictures. But, I didn't know the photo shoot would be happening. If I had known, we would have changed the baby's shirt at least. We were hoping to have the picture taken in our clothes, not a hospital t-shirt - and certainly not a t-shirt on which there was a huge yellow spit-up stain. Of course, the stain wasn't visible in the proofs - and I didn't know know it was a problem until the pictures came in the mail $$$$ later.

Even though I had a private room, I had a shared bath. I was less than thrilled about this for two reasons. First, I know I sometimes spent quite a bit of time in there myself, as did the women on the other side. The room is then obviously not accessible to the other patient. Second, and more importantly, they just cannot be kept adequately clean. This is disgusting and I apologize, but there was blood (not mine)in the bathroom on at least two occasions when I was in there. I know that the first time I used the restroom with the help of the nurse and then again when my catheter was removed, there was a pretty big mess in there, so it isn't a big surprise that there would be blood in there. The nurse did clean up afterwards, but I suspect she isn't as thorough as the housekeeping staff (who did clean in there regularly too). I know there were doing their best to keep it clean, but I still think it is extremely unpleasant to have to share a bathroom with someone who leaves blood here and there, through no fault of her own.

In terms of personal treatment: one morning I got up around 6:00 and took a stroll with my baby. I saw food trays in the hallway and saw someone delivering food to patients. I still had not received breakfast by 9:45, so I finally asked for it. I did get my food, but the person who brought it to me treated me like I was making an unreasonable demand. I realize I undoubtedly interupted whatever task she was doing at the time, but I don't think it is unreasonable to have breakfast before 10:00. Then, they brought me lunch about 11:45. Hmmm - not hungry then.

When we finally got around to leaving, things did not progress as smoothly as I would have liked, and we took forever getting out. I am pretty sure the unit was pretty busy at the time and they probably really did need my bed, but I didn't think it was necessary to overhear one staff member asking my nurse if ''that lady in Room X ever get out of here''. Part of the delay was their own fault (pharmacy didn't have my prescription because no one had ever sent it to them). In addition, when we did finally manage to leave, we stopped to pay our bill, as we had been instructed by someone from the business office who stopped by. The person who wheeled me down to the parking lot therefore just had to stand around while my husband took care of that; why they couldn't have told him to take care of it immediately before we left (as he did with picking up the pharmacy order), I don't know. But that was a waste of at least fifteen minutes of her time.

In sum, although I haven't commented on medical care at all, I was very happy with that and have no complaints. The doctors I saw were all great and definitely spent the time to explain whatever was necessary and answer questions, and the nurses were really terrific too; they did their jobs in what I would consider to be less than ideal conditions in a professional, caring way. I'd recommend Kaiser Oakland for medical care (including L&D) in a heartbeat. But be prepared for a less than ideal facility.

Has anyone recently delivered at Oakland Kaiser? I am trying to decide between Oakland Kaiser or Walnut Creek. I am being strongly encouraged to go to Oakland because Walnut Creek Kaiser is very busy. I had a bad experience with the residents at Oakland Kaiser/Alta Bates in 2000 and then a great experience with the mid wifes at Walnut Creek 2003. So we are inclined to hedge our bets and trek out to Walnut Creek. Thanks for all your stories and recommendations anon

I arrived after my water broke, with contractions just starting. It was busy so I waited in the triage room until a L&D room was available. The nurse it the L&D room tried to give me the hard sell on an epidural but backed off when I said firmly that I did not want one. The nurse was the main person taking care of me, with the resident and the ''real doctor'' popping in once or twice to check on me, and finally to deliver the baby. I had an almost natural birth as I requested Fentanyl and was given it promptly.

I was in a triple recovery room but the two other ladies left that day and the nurses moved me to the window-side bed that night and I was alone until the middle of the night when someone else came in. The triples have divider curtains so you do have privacy, and you have access to a big glassed-in hallway with a great view of the east bay hills and the bay so you can show baby where he or she lives!

Not knowing anything about Walnut Creek Kaiser, I can't imagine it is that much better. I think if you live closer to Oakland there is no reason not to have your baby there. It would be terrible to drive out from Oakland to WC and get turned back around! I would recommend however:
- Telling the nurses what you want, ie, no epidural, right away and in no uncertain terms. (It is busy and I think some nurses just want you to be quiet and make their life easier.)
- Bringing one more support person besides your partner, ie, your mom or a doula, so if someone needs to go get someone or something, you will still have a friend with you.
- Bringing bottled water to drink during labor (They do let you drink but they will just give you dixie cups!)
- Bringing a hot pad for your back and washcloths to put on your forehead (You would think that they would have these things in a hospital, and no doubt they do, but it is a lot easier if you have your own. Otherwise you will get paper towel compresses.)

One more plus of Oakland Kaiser--you can send your husband out for food from Piedmont Avenue! anon kaiser mom

Very happy with Oakland Kaiser delivery. Susan

I would strongly recommend getting a doula if you hope to go natural. Most hospitals are so used to the medicated approach they don't know what else to do if you don't want the meds. A doula will have other choices to offer you. Her support alone might make the difference.

I'm happy to talk with you more about my experience. Just send me an email. Kim

My experience in the maternity ward was completely different however. We were put in a triple that was being used as a double, which means sharing a bathroom with another woman and her partner. Even as just a double, the room was way too crowded to move around. Just a few hours after my delivery (in the middle of the night!), the engineering dept wanted to move everyone out of the rooms to fix the toilets. The nurse kept it from happening, but the whole scene was chaotic in a lot of ways and I hardly slept. Dealing with the bathroom is enough of an issue after giving birth! The nurses seemed very competent, but they were just too busy to really take care of everyone. We got an early discharge and left less than 24 hours after delivery, which looking back was really too early for me physically, but I just wanted out of the whole place. Laura

Hello, This question was asked in '04 but there's been nothing new for about a year and at the time, the new L&D facilities at Kaiser Oakland were still quite new. Any more recent feedback? Is getting a private room likely? Are there tubs? Do residents still do most of the deliveries? Are there any midwives? Thanks much! Expecting

Can any new moms or health care workers comment on the new labor and delivery facilities at Kaiser Oakland? I just had a tour and I wasn't as impressed as I'd hoped I would be, given that it is brand new. How well organized are they? Any overcrowding problems? (It seemed small.) Did you get a choice for a private or shared post-natal room? How were the nurses? I heard that they have all been recently hired, at good wages, and so Kaiser has attracted good people... but that because everything is still so new, there are still lots of kinks. What was the attitude toward medical pain relief vs. natural labor? Any and all comments would be very helpful as I decide whether to go there or to another Kaiser facility!

[no replies received]

Although Kaiser patients (Oakland) have been delivering their babies at Alta Bates Hospital since 1998, someone told me that it is going to change very soon. Since Alta Bates-Summit is planning to take all L&D to Ashby campus, there will not be enough space for Kaiser patients, and Kaiser patients births will be in the Oakland facility... Is that true? It is very important for me to know this. I am switching health insurance carriers and I am considering Kaiser but only if L&D can be at Alta Bates... Thank you for your help! Alta Bates nurses made a difference in my life

I'm looking for recent childbirth experiences at either Kaiser Oakland or Vallejo. The most up-to-date ones I could find in the archives for Oakland were over a year old, and I couldn't find anything on Vallejo. If you received prenatal care and/or delivered at either facility in the past 6-12 months, would you mind sharing your experience (and any recommendations for NPs or MDs)? If you have your own doula, does that work within either facility? Thanks
Choosing between Kaisers

The elevator was far from the ER (where we had to enter -- in the middle of the night), so I would have gotten a wheelchair (in hindsight). I was irritated when they were trying to admit me -- they wanted my kaiser card (I tried to tell them just the number) and they wanted me to sign stuff, etc. All very normal -- but I was dilated to 10 cm already (which no one knew at that time, and I wasn't really very vocal about how I felt like pushing already, whoops) so in hindsight, no wonder I was annoyed! That was the worst part.

Once they figured out that I was going to deliver the baby asap :) they were great. At one point I think there were 6 or 7 people in the room to make everything happen, which would not have happened at oakland since they were so full. The post partum care was just fine. I wasn't overly thrilled with the care, but I think that's because I really didn't need anything and all the stuff they are required to tell you -- about how to care for yourself and your kiddie -- I was very familiar with since this was not my first (and my last birth experience wasn't too long ago). I delivered my first at alta bates, and i would say that this was just as good an experience overall, if not better.

My husband was pretty frustrated that we had to drive to vallejo (which made me even more mad in the midst of my contractions) but in the end I had a lot more attention, quiet recovery time, and assistance than if I had been at Oakland at that time. I have a friend who was the last delivery they accepted before they started diverting and she said it was miserable. -might choose vallejo again!

[Editor] additional reviews received for Oakland

regarding Vallejo Kaiser -- a good friend just had her third baby at there, and had a great experience. This may be colored by the fact that her husband is on staff there, but it still seems to be quite a good facility. I was there for part of her labor, and physically, the labor and delivery rooms are very spacious and comfortable, and the nurses and doctors seemed to be a very friendly and competent lot. They don't have residents, but the midwife (I believe there's only one) is only there during the day. Andrea

Childbirth at Kaiser Walnut Creek

hello, i just wanted to describe my very wonderful experience with kaiser walnut creek l+d. i had a midwife, whose name now escapes me, who was fabulous! she was right there with me through my entire delivery. so much more than i ever anticipated. i knew going into my delivery that i would want an epidural, and that was delivered flawlessly by the anesthesiologist. (i do have friends from other institutions who had difficulty obtaining the medications they needed due to short staffing / the medications were not offered by her attendant or whatever). not so great things do happen at all hospitals, that's for sure. the staff at kaiser walnut creek was very professional and responded to my needs in a timely fashion. when i arrived at the hospital, i was 6cm and things went quickly, yet my experience is one that i look back on fondly. medication was offered in a timely manner and there were no problems there. i would consider myself in good hands for my 3rd child there. happy birthing at kaiser wc

Our doula strongly recommended WC over Oakland Kaiser. In fact, she feels Kaiser WC is one of the best L&D hospitals in the area, being more sensitive and flexible regarding the mother's wishes for her birth experience. Kaiser Oakland is a teaching facility, and as such, it seems more attached to its protocols. I also believe that the cesarean rate at WC is significantly lower than Oakland. (Although I'm sure you would have ended up with a c-section at either facility with a breech birth.)

As far as the tour went, we found the facilities fairly comparable - Oakland has slightly newer equipment, but WC is more spacious. WC does hand out a letter at the tour explaining their philosophy and some of their standard practices, which I found reassuring.

My daughter is due in just a few weeks, and I also plan for a natural/ drug-free birth barring unforseen problems. I showed my birth plan to the WC midwife and she was supportive. However, she did say that most women there opt for pain medication, so who knows how things will progress since I'm going against the norm. Hoping for the best! Kimberly

Re: Childbirth at Kaiser - where to deliver?

I recently gave birth at Kaiser Walnut creek (August 27, 05) and I thought that the facilities there were wonderful along with the staff. I had unforseen complications and ended up having a c-section. The midwives and DR's handeled everything so kindley and were so wonderful.I had a great experience with this hospital. It was not busy at all when I was there. If you are worried about the ''crowds'' what I did was this...I was torn between Oakland and Walnut creek. So when I was ready to go to the hospital I called both places, which you are suppose to do anyway to let them know you are coming so they can get your records. Anyway when I called Oakland all of their birthing rooms were occupied so I went to walnut creek. Whether or not either of your choices will be busy all I can say is don't worry about it. They told me that around my due date it would be busy too and it was very slow at Walnut creek. Happy birthing! Gina

I ended up needing an emergency c-section, and although it was scary, the professionalism, efficiency, and sensitivity of everyone involved made the experience a very positive one in the end. I would definitely go there again.

I believe that Hayward does not have as many midwives on duty as WC does; check this out before you commit to going there.

You can call to go to Walnut Creek first; if they're full, they can reroute you to Hayward. I think it's a positive thing to keep Walnut Creek in such high demand; it may ultimately make Kaiser management sit up and take note that the midwife program there is something to be studied and emulated elsewhere.

Congratulations and good luck! Kimberly Cross

I had a perfectly fine experience that resulted in a perfectly healthy baby. The staff was very professional on the whole. But, as I think is very common, I was surprised at how medicalized my whole experience still was, even though I had a midwife. Now that I've been through it I know: once you enter the hospital, there are certain protocols and procedures that must be followed regardless of whether they actually result in a better birth. For instance, right when I got to triage they detected that my baby had a decelerating heart rate. This led to constant monitoring...which led to not being able to walk around...which meant my labor was probably longer...which meant I had to push lying on my back as opposed to squatting, etc. It's a very common story, I think regardless of what hospital you give birth in. I had a midwife assigned to me, but she was so overloaded that I spent most of the time with two (very wonderful but pretty traditional) labor nurses. I ended up giving birth naturally, but got the definite impression that this isn't the usual end result of births there.

I'm telling you in the hopes that it'll help you prepare for whatever happens with your birth. I think I had higher expectations because of the midwives, but ended up realizing that because they're working within the hospital system, they don't have a ton of options. I think if I had it to do over again, I would have just gone to Kaiser Oakland because it's a lot closer to home. Good luck with your decision! anon

You should check out Kaiser's Walnut Creek hospital. There they have a shiny new facility with nice birthing rooms, in-room showers and lots of postpartum rooms. When we had our daughter 2 years ago there, they had several nurse-midwives who did deliveries (as well as OBs, of course). We had a quick, easy delivery with a midwife and didn't see an OB until we were in a postpartum room... which was how we wanted it.