Lancaster General Women & Babies Hospital is a family-centered hospital, and unlike any hospital in the region, focuses completely on the healthcare needs of women. The hospital is located near the Lancaster General Health Suburban Outpatient Pavilion, close to the intersection of Harrisburg Pike and Rohrerstown Road in East Hempfield Township.
Maternity services are only the beginning at Women & Babies Hospital. Not only do we deliver more babies than any other hospital in Lancaster County, we also provide comprehensive women’s health services including lab testing, screening mammograms, ultrasounds, chest x-rays, CT scans and inpatient and outpatient surgery. We also provide physical therapy for lymphedema, incontinence, pelvic floor, prenatal and postpartum conditions and osteoporosis. No matter what your health concerns, Lancaster General Health provides services that are customized to fit your needs at every stage of life.
The Reception Pavilion
The registration desk is the first stop for both patients and visitors. Here you will receive directions, information and a visitor’s badge if you are visiting a maternity patient. Maternity patients are evaluated prior to admission in an adjacent assessment and testing area. A café offers beverages and snacks, while the gift shop stocks reading materials, gifts and toiletries for the convenience of patients, friends and family. The Reception Pavilion also includes a quiet meditation area and an outdoor play area where families can take their children for a play break. Wireless internet service is available to visitors in the reception area.
The Women's Outpatient Pavilion
On the first floor is Outpatient Laboratory Testing. Providing fast, accurate test results is a hallmark of Lancaster General Health laboratories. Routine blood tests, urinalysis and pre-admission testing are performed in the Women’s Health Pavilion. No appointment is necessary in most cases. Just visit the lab during scheduled hours. Screening mammograms are also performed on the first floor.
Expert surgical care is also provided in the Women’s Health Pavilion, in the inpatient and day surgery units. Private, inpatient rooms look and feel more like home than a hospital, and private, pre- and post-surgery rooms are available for outpatient care.
The Medical Office Building
For an extra measure of convenience, many of the area’s finest physicians are located in the three-story medical office building located next to the Women & Babies Hospital. Women are able to visit their physician, and if desired, proceed to lab testing without leaving the building. Physician services include obstetrics and gynecology, including treatment for high-risk pregnancy and infertility, family medicine, women’s cancer specialists, neonatology, pediatric cardiology, pediatric rheumatology and pediatric pulmonology.
The Delivery Pavilion
This pavilion includes spacious, private labor-and-delivery rooms. Each is large enough to host family members who wish to be present during the birth. Rooms include whirlpool tubs, showers and other amenities to assist the labor process. Surgical suites are nearby to accommodate Cesarean births and other women’s health surgeries. A special post-anesthesia care area allows women to recover from surgery in comfort. In addition, we have a special unit for mothers-to-be who experience pre-term labor where their pregnancy can be monitored with state-of-the-art equipment and medication can be administered if necessary.
The Delivery Pavilion also houses Lancaster County’s first Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Here, physicians and specially trained NICU nurses provide round-the-clock care for newborns that need extra attention. This specialized nursery provides the calm, peaceful environment essential to the proper development of premature infants. The NICU area also includes family sitting and visiting rooms, private breastfeeding areas, and overnight accommodations for parents so moms, dads and visitors are as comfortable as possible.
The Family Pavilion
Here, new mothers, babies and their families enjoy the first days of a new life together in one of our private post-birth rooms. Each room is spacious enough to accommodate family and visitors, and our restaurant-style meal service is more like you’d find in a hotel than a hospital. Our exceptional nurses attend to every need of mother and baby, applying a holistic healthcare approach to care for the whole person—physically and emotionally. Two nurseries are also located in the Family Pavilion, as well as a family lounge with a small kitchen area.
About Family Centered Care
About 2 hours after the delivery of a healthy baby, the family is transferred to the Couplet Care Unit in the Family Pavilion.
Family Centered Care is designed to get families more involved in the baby’s care during the first few days of life. We believe families can be a great support and assistance to mom and baby. A support person of your choice is encouraged to remain with you throughout your stay.
Our nursing staff concentrates their practice on caring for the mother and the baby. This is done by having the same nurse care for you and your baby in the same room. Studies show that keeping mom and baby together better prepares both for going home. Other benefits of mother and baby rooming in include:
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Helping mother’s and baby’s sleep patterns naturally become more alike
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Learning to tell when the baby is hungry, in pain, needs to be held, or has been held too much
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Encouraging more family bonding by including other family members in the care of mother and baby
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Providing a supportive environment for breast-feeding
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Encouraging infant care questions from parents and family
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Opening communication between parents and the medical staff
The benefits of keeping moms and babies together are so impressive that many professional organizations have made recommendations promoting skin-to-skin contact and rooming in and opposing routine separation of mothers and babies after birth. These organizations include the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (2003); American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP Expert Workgroup on Breastfeeding, 2005); American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG Committee on HealthCare for Underserved Women & Committee on Obstetric Practice, 2007); Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (2000); International Lactation Consultant Association (1999); and World Health Organization (1998).*
*Source: Crenshaw, J. (2007). Care Practice #6: No separation of mother and baby, with unlimited opportunities for breastfeeding. Journal of Perinatal Education. 16(3), 39-43.
If a parent requests that his or her baby be sent to the nursery, our nursing staff will accommodate your request.