What is Mama Care?
Offered in a group setting for mothers and their support people, “Mama Care” combines prenatal care, childbirth education and social support into one program.
With Mama Care, you will:
- Have more time with your provider
- Actively participate in your healthcare
- Learn more about pregnancy and birth in the Garbose Family Special Delivery Unit (SDU)
- Be better prepared for birth and caring for your baby
Each Mama Care series consists of four two-hour long sessions facilitated by a certified nurse midwife and a registered nurse from the SDU. During each session, you will have a brief private visit with the midwife in a screened-off area of the room, as well as an interactive discussion with other women who are planning an SDU birth. There are plenty of opportunities to address your concerns, questions, hopes and fears.
These sessions take the place of some of the one-on-one prenatal visits you would otherwise have with midwives and nurse practitioners. Any additional services required (such as ultrasounds) can often be scheduled to occur the same day as the sessions.
To participate in the group, you must be an otherwise healthy mother facing a pregnancy complicated by a birth defect who is planning to deliver in the SDU. You must also be able to attend all scheduled group sessions.
For more information, please talk to your CHOP healthcare team or call 800-468-8376.
Why choose Mama Care?
Mama Care provides you with unhurried time with your provider as well as an opportunity to form a community with other pregnant women who are going through a similar experience. Partners and other support people often join the sessions as well.
Group prenatal care has been shown to have positive outcomes for women who participate, including a decrease in stress levels, higher birth weights and lower rates of preterm delivery.
Snacks are provided, and there is time for sharing with other group members in a fun and relaxed setting.
Some of the topics covered include:
- Common discomforts of pregnancy
- Prenatal nutrition
- Stress reduction
- Relationships
- What to expect in the SDU during your baby’s birth
- Labor and birth (vaginal and cesarean)
- Breastfeeding and pumping
- Postpartum issues
- Preparation for: Newborn/Infant Intensive Care Unit (N/IICU), Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU)
- Parenting issues