Unplanned Cesarean Delivery

Emergency C-Section at the Childbirth Center

Sometimes, circumstances of labor and delivery change, and cesarean birth becomes necessary for the health and safety of mom and /or baby. Your physician and health care team will explain the indication for cesarean and help prepare you for the procedure. At MoBap, we are committed to cesarean birth being a family-friendly experience, as you celebrate welcoming your baby into the world.

Your labor nurse will help you remove any jewelry, clip the hair from your belly button to your pubic bone, and clean your skin with an anti-bacterial wipe. Your anesthesia provider will meet with you prior to moving to the cesarean suite to discuss pain management. If you already have an epidural for labor, it can be dosed more heavily to keep you comfortable throughout your cesarean birth. If you do not have anesthesia in labor, a spinal anesthetic can be placed in the cesarean birth suite. In the event of an emergency, the decision may be made to use general anesthesia (put you to sleep). Rest assured that emergencies, while occurring in only 1% of births, are handled with skill and speed.

Your partner will be given special clothes to wear to accompany you to the cesarean suite. You can bring your camera and you baby book for footprints. Your baby will be dried and warmed, all within your sight, and given to you and your partner as soon as possible. At the completion of your cesarean, your baby will be placed in your arms, or skin to skin if you wish, as you move, together as a family, to recovery.

For more information on the labor and delivery options available at Missouri Baptist, call (314) 996-LIFE (5433) or toll-free (800) 392-0936, or email us.