Some of you not. For those that are interested in how this hospital rates on my most recent visit there, read the following article. It is not pretty, I'm sorry to say.
I remember in the early to mid 2000's Cedars actually used to leave you alone if you wanted natural birth, kinda just leave you be in the room without bothering you, I would of LOVED that treatment this time around, however, no luck. The nurses, specially Nurse "Violet" invaded the space constantly, being overly sweet almost like the Doctor had asked her to stick to us, constantly trying to convince my patient to do this intervention and that, and straight out lying to her the whole time. I couldn't get a word in edgewise, and I didn't really have time to discuss anything in private with my client.
The whole time not only was she invasive in her nursing, she decided she needed to take one entire side of the bed, during pushing and her Husband and I had to stay to one side. Now, I have very rarely ran into such petty troubles at any hospital before. Nurses usually are respectful that one has a coach, and of course their spouse is there also to coach, they usually respectfully allow us to do our job and leave us alone. All the meanwhile she was screaming pushing instructions to my client, "push, push, push! In your bottom, it's your bottom, In your bottom! Push!" I could of knocked her out. But instead, I stepped aside to allow the husband to help me on my side, offered him my chair which he politely declined and we both stayed to one side. I have never felt so intruded at a birth. Constant weird vibes, resentfulness from the nurse and strange indignant attitudes from both Nurse and Doctor, as if they couldn't conceive of any other method birth, and I was crazy for trying to get a client a more natural experience. I don't know if this had to do with the cultural differences of both major participants in this birth Nurse Violet and Doctor Baud-aria. I'd hoped not, but honestly other people I have dealt with- even in past experiences at Cedars at least in relation to their attitude, haven't been this much trouble, I haven't had this much drama at any hospital. So, I guess I'll say it's a combination of bad circumstances and terrible luck.
In this most recent birth my client was told that 97% of women at Cedars get epidurals- if that's not a red flag of a statistic, I don't know what is!
Instead of being angry, Like I was in my review. 'll give you a list of things to consider. No, I do not recommend Cedars if you intend a natural childbirth. If you intend to get drugged-up anyway and could care less 'cause you believe that nothing really affects you or your baby, than by all means, Cedars will be the perfect "friendly" place for you. They'll accommodate to your every need.
They love intervention and DRUGS, they LOVE DRUGS, and even when they promise you they don't intervene, wont offer you drugs, will allow natural birthing options, alternative methods of laboring and alternative pushing positions, they do not.
My client had a very, very specific birth plan, it was completely natural and entailed even things like husband wanted to catch the baby, etc. This is what happened to the major points of it.
Birth Plan Violation #1 (Do not offer me drugs) Requested No epidural- was literally convinced into epidural- was told epidural had no narcotics. By Nurse Violet and two other attending nurses, all with a dismissive "oh, no, of course it doesn't!" No narcotics, ever! (While the MD Anesthesiologist) confirmed the fact that their particular epidural combination HAS and did in fact have a narcotic component which was in fact put into my clients body and was probably what was causing the itching and discomfort- allergic reaction.
Birth Plan Violation #2 (No Residents, or not fully licensed professionals) Requested no Residents work of her or her baby- 3 Residents were forced upon us, and Doctor and Nurse gave them OK to work on baby despite the fact that I just informed the pediatric team she did not want residents to work on her baby.
Birth Plan Violation #3 (My Doula speaks for me and forwards you my reuqest) Upon attempting to discuss something in private with Client, Nurse Violet decided to have a screaming confrontation with me telling me I couldn't give the client a professional perspective because "she" was a professional and I wasn't. And I was "biased" against pitocin- not having spoken to my client about pitocin until that very moment in time. I had an internal chuckle at this- because whatever choices she made about Pitocin came from her own research and her Lamaze class. So, I just snapped and told her, I actually haven't' spoken to my client about Pitocin at all. And it was a mess. A horrible dramatic mess right in front of the patient. I don't generally loose my cool, but my last couple of hospital experiences one at Kaiser Sunset and Cedars, have left me a little more on edge, because they have both been very concerning.
Birth Plan Violation #4 (Please do not give me pitocin) was talked into Pitocin due to "non effective contractions" per Doctor and Nurse Violet who told her that Pitocin has "no known links to c-section". I just shook my head at this point.
Birth plan Violation # 6 ( Do light massage of uterus.) Doctor proceeded with an extra ordinary invasive uterine massage, told her "She didn't care if she killed her, she was going to it to save her from bleeding". Patient had NORMAL bleeding. Nothing extraordinary, uterus clamped down as normal right away.
Birth Plan Violatio #7 (Unecessary Interventions) Was told baby had an emergency and thus birth plan options did not apply. Baby had a debatable +3 meconium, which was actually about +2, I saw it myself, I've seen +3 meconium, there's no doubt, that this was not what this was. I observed it, the original attending OB confirmed a +1, +2, baby was immediately responsive, yet they kept working on her as if she wasn't. They scared the shit out of the parents, because the fully licensed Pediatric Nurse was teaching 3 other students- thus- I'm sure the full display of "all the things that can happen with a meconium baby" had to be achieved. Violating present and clear research that was recently published regarding proceeding with aggressive suctioning and old meconium procedures despite responsiveness of newborn. She was put on an oxygen measurement machine, though she was pink and responsive. I could go on, but it will get too technical.
Birth plan Violation # 8 (Do not do unathorized procedures to the newborn) Bloods were drawn on the baby for sugar levels, according to the nurses (Nurse Violet) and the Pediatric Nurse, due to "concerns for sugar levels with meconium babies). I asked them for this protocol in writing, never having heard of it, and never having heard of correlation between meconium babies and low sugar levels.) Unless they were trying to determine if baby had suffered an oxygen insult above and beyond the normal process of birth- but even then, the fact that the newborn was responsive 1 min after birth. They stared blankly at me and left the room, never giving me an answer. Turns out, best we can figure that they assumed the baby was small for the gestational age of pregnancy, even though patient told them repeatedly that small babies ran in her family and culture. Not only was blood drawn from babies arm without consent or full disclosure, upon asking Nurse Violet if bloods had been drawn before newborn had a chance to breastfeed, making the results questionable, she said "No, way, never! No, we don't do that here without you breastfeeding first, ever!" AFTER the fact that it had already done it. .
Turns out baby was "fine". No problems breathing, with oxygen loads, with sugars, with anything. And yet all the drama. I don't believe that I should be able to recognize a baby who is responsive and be able to recognize meconium stages better than the "professionals" but apparently- YES. That is correct. I don't know how they have never seen a responsive baby Vs a non responsive baby.
And how they have never seen actual +3 meconium, but I have and can recognize the difference in how it looks, and how it interacts with the newborn.
And I'm going to assume that they have in fact seen a SGA baby before- Small for Gestational Age baby before- rather than a circumstantially small child, and they actually know how to tell the telltale signs of an actual SGA and can tell the difference!
I'm going to assume that the reason these unnecessary things were done to the fragile, traumatized newborn, who took in about 8 loads of epidural an one heavy load of pitocin was not because they are stupid but because they needed to check off some items in the pediatric teams licensing.
Birth plan Violation # 5 (Please do not do any of the "Standard" procedures on baby until 24 hours of birth) All procedures where done to baby at once. Arythromicin, Vitamin K, possibly even Vaccines.
(I'm horrified, all this time the mother was asking for her baby. Which she asked for them to work on on her bed- which they didn't.)
Birth Plan Violation # 9 ( Breastfeeding only) Was told to give baby formula in between breastfeeding due to a few oz "too much" weight loss after delivery. Despite the fact they had pumped her with 4 x the usual fluids during labor. And they did not properly inform her of the possible bad affects of giving a new born formula and how that would affect breastfeeding for her- which it did.
Those are the major things. I hope you can see why I had to write this. And I hope you can use the information for your own good.
Much Love,
Claudia
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