Complete Labor & Delivery
Expectant parents need support throughout the labor and delivery process. The expert health care professionals of the Dignity Health childbirth team provide pain relief, medical monitoring, emotional support, information, and instruction to help parents handle labor, birth, and parenthood. Our birth centers at Dominican Hospital in Santa Cruz and Sequoia Hospital in Redwood City offer labor and delivery services in the Bay Area. To see a Dignity Health doctor that’s right for you, use our online Find a Doctor tool.
Labor & Delivery Services Offered
Available services include:
- Fetal monitoring. Nurses and doctors monitor the baby’s heart rate and well-being during labor.
- Anesthesia and pain control. Pain relief during labor is important. Doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists, and nurse anesthetists work together to offer both non-medical and medical pain relief. Pain relief options include breathing techniques, water therapy, regional anesthesia, injectable medication, nitrous, and epidurals.
- Episiotomy. Episiotomies are incisions in the perineum, the tissue between the vagina and anus. A doctor may perform an episiotomy if forceps or another instrument are needed to aid the delivery.
- Vaginal birth. Most women give birth vaginally.
- Natural birth. Birth without the use of pain medication is called natural birth. During natural birth, the childbirth team will help the laboring mother use other pain relief strategies and coping techniques.
- Water birth. Giving birth in a tub of warm water can help ease pain during labor.
- C-section. A C-section, or cesarean section, is a surgical birth. C-sections can be planned in advance or performed in case of emergency. A C-section is performed in an operating room. A woman who has a C-section will likely stay in the hospital for a few days after delivery.
- NICU care. Neonatal intensive care units (NICU)s are special environments staffed by neonatologists and other experts who routinely work with babies in need of extra support and monitoring after birth.
What to Expect During Labor & Delivery
The doctors, nurses, and other members of the childbirth team at Dignity Health strive to meet your medical, emotional, and social needs by providing individualized labor, delivery, and birth care. Each member of your care team is dedicated to a safe and healthy delivery for you and your baby.
Dignity Health offers complete labor and delivery services in the Bay Area, including Santa Cruz and Redwood City.
