# Help! Natural birth at Kaiser?



## hattifattener (Jan 10, 2008)

Hello! DH, DD, and I are expecting a baby in November, and even before my first appointment, I'm wondering what it's going to be like, doing natural birth under the auspices of Kaiser. Anyone out there BTDT?

When DD was born we were privately insured, so we could do whatever the hell we wanted. We chose to do it in a hospital, with a midwife, and it was absolutely intervention free.

But our circumstances have really changed, and there is absolutely no way to get out of doing it via Kaiser. Someone's gotta pay for it, and it can't be us grad students and SAHM's!









So I'm hoping to hear people's experiences in this situation- what to ask for, what to be on guard about. Thanks in advance!


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## hookahgirl (May 22, 2005)

Well, they wont cover HB, that is for sure LOL But if you get a list (yourself, dont call Kaiser) of all the CNMs in your area, ask them if they take Kaiser, THEN call Kaiser to confirm you can go to them.
Its a PITB but it can happen!


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## SoCaliMommy (Jun 11, 2004)

I gave birth to my son at Kaiser Harbor City in Harbor City,CA

It wasn't a great experience.. Their constant monitoring was a joke they didn't even pay attention to the monitors when it was going off when my son was stretching making it look like a big strong contraction







:

17hours total from first contraction til he was born. I ended up with a IV like they wanted because the no food or drink and by the time he was born i hadn't eaten in 24hours







and my heart rate started to go up * the pushed doing the heplock just incase*







. The post partum room there was a joke very small room with 2 beds very close to each other







I left AMA when my son was 6hours old, i was not about to pay $200 co pay per night to spend 24hours in a cracker jack box.


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## SoCaliMommy (Jun 11, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *hookahgirl* 
Well, they wont cover HB, that is for sure LOL But if you get a list (yourself, dont call Kaiser) of all the CNMs in your area, ask them if they take Kaiser, THEN call Kaiser to confirm you can go to them.
Its a PITB but it can happen!


That won't work, Kaiser is a HMO and you can only go to Kaiser facilities and Kaiser Hospitals.


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## hookahgirl (May 22, 2005)

Not here. I have HMO too and there are no "Kaiser Hospitals" there are only Kaiser "aproved" hospitals. That is why I said to call the MW's and figure out who takes Kaiser, because in our state I guess its different.


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## paradoxia13 (Aug 21, 2006)

Los Angeles area Kaiser are....well...the pits.








But, Woodland Hills is better than some.

Where are you located?


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## 2+twins (Apr 20, 2004)

Depends on the Kaiser. Kaiser Walnut Creek, CA has a very good natural birth reputation.


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## hattifattener (Jan 10, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *paradoxia13* 
Los Angeles area Kaiser are....well...the pits.








But, Woodland Hills is better than some.

Where are you located?

Portland, OR, if that helps.


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## Ironica (Sep 11, 2005)

I had Kaiser coverage for 26 years (from birth to age 26) and, though no personal experience with birth there aside from when I was the newborn, I know some folks who have birthed in various Kaiser facilities. There is HUGE variation from one facility to another... even here in LA, two Kaiser hospitals a few miles apart are just entirely different worlds. I wouldn't go to West LA Kaiser if I was bleeding to death, but had many great experiences with Sunset and Panorama City, and have heard Inglewood is great too.

Several Kaiser hospitals have been certified Baby-Friendly, including Kaiser Sunnyside in Clackamas, Oregon... which may be the other end of the state from you ;-) but it's a thought. Some Kaisers have CNMs who do prenatal and deliveries. When my best friend birthed her son at a Kaiser in Northern California, they gave them a copy of the Sears Baby Book... hey, ours didn't come with an instruction manual! ;-)

The big thing about Kaiser is, because it's all one vertically-integrated organization, they're motivated to keep health care costs down. This has advantages and disadvantages. In the many Kaiser facilities, this plays out as a big emphasis on preventive health care. They'd rather run the test and find out that it's nothing than wait and see and possibly pay a lot more money to treat you down the line. For L&D and postpartum, this often translates into lower c-section rates and better support for breastfeeding. Of course, there are less happy ways to control costs :-/, but like I said, it depends on the facility.

If you haven't been with Kaiser long, ask around about the facilities in your area and people's experiences with them. I haven't really found that there's much variation from one department to another... rather, it's the facility as a whole that seems to either be on the ball or totally crappy. The same Kaiser (West LA) failed to detect my broken ACL until I re-injured the knee *and* left me sitting in the ER waiting room with an agonizing UTI for half an hour to take me after the shift change.







: Kaiser Sunset, though, was extremely thorough in diagnosing the cause of my mom's neck/shoulder pain, did a beautiful job repairing said ACL, and probably prevented me from offing myself in my late teens through a combined effort of the Teenage Medicine and Mental Health departments (conveniently located in the same building ;-). I've had Kaiser doctors recommend melatonin for sleep issues, chromium for weight loss, and though the plan doesn't pay for it, they'll consult on and refer for TCM/acupuncture too. Not *all* of them, but it happens!

So, Kaiser could be a really GOOD thing. Just poke around, talk to the maternity ward at whatever facilities are in reach of you, and best of luck!


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## SublimeBirthGirl (Sep 9, 2005)

Where I live, insurance usually doesn't cover homebirths and the midwives are quite affordable. That's what I would do-pay out of pocket for a HB.


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## dogmom327 (Apr 19, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *hattifattener* 
Portland, OR, if that helps.

I did have a local midwife (does home births) tell me that she knows of people who've had good experiences at Sunnyside Kaiser because they brought a doula and the nursing staff pretty much ignored them and let her labor alone. The hospital is old and not very nice (this is what I've been told) but if they ignore you and let your doula be your support person that would likely help the situation greatly.

I've also heard if Sunnyside is full, they send you to St. Vincent's--maybe check and see where they will likely want you to go. That could make a huge difference. St. V's has a high CS rate unfortunately.

If you need a doula and money is an issue, try contacting the local midwife college (Birthingway.org). They have a doula program and can likely refer you to someone. Also, they have students who need to attend 5 births to get their certification so they would likely be willing to do it for free or very little cost.

You might also try posting your question on the Oregon boards in the Finding Your Tribe section. Maybe there are people on there who've had first hand experience with Kaiser Sunnyside.

Have you contacted any homebirth midwives in the area to see if they would work with you on the cost? Maybe payments or barter for part of the fee? Honestly, I'd be thinking seriously about a UC if my only other option were a hospital--but that's me


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