Labor and Delivery

Please call your provider prior to going to the hospital, unless you have a scheduled appointment.

If you are in labor, please enter through the Emergency Department entrance and have your driver park in the easily accessible short-term maternity parking area. At the Emergency Department you will be directed or escorted to Labor and Delivery on the 5th floor.

If you are here for a scheduled appointment, induction, or Cesarean birth, please park in the parking garage across from the hospital’s main entrance and enter through the main hospital lobby. Our information desk staff will direct you to the elevators where you will proceed to the 5th floor Labor and Delivery.

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We continue to adjust our visitor policy to reflect optimal patient support balanced with creating a hospital environment that minimizes infection risks.  See our Visitation Guidelines for current visitor information.

You may have up to three support people with you during labor. If you choose to have a doula present, this person will count as one of your support people. Please see our Visitation Guidelines for current visitation information.

Typically, your care partner acts as the family spokesperson and communicates information to other family members. They can accompany the patient to select tests and procedures. They can also help with personal care, feeding, food selection, walking, etc. They are also taught skills to provide care when the patient and baby are at home. Your care partner also has access to kitchen areas, where available, and receives a 10% discount in the Bridgeport Hospital cafeteria and coffee shop. They must show their identification bracelet to receive this discount.

Please note: Overnight stays are limited to one care partner over the age of 18. 

Many people in labor find it helpful to walk in the hall. The Labor Lounge, in the center of the unit, is a private, comfortable place to take a break while you're walking.

At Bridgeport Hospital we promote vaginal deliveries whenever possible. However, when deemed medically necessary, some patients may need a Cesarean section (C-section). This is a surgical procedure. Anesthesia is provided (usually an epidural or spinal anesthesia — discuss your wishes with your anesthesiologist). Then a skin incision is made — usually across the lower part of the pregnant person’s abdomen — followed by a matching incision in the uterus. The bag of water is broken, and the baby is lifted out of the womb. The umbilical cord connecting the baby to the placenta is clamped and cut. Then the placenta is removed, and the incisions are stitched or sutured. The skin incision is usually closed with absorbable sutures, which do not need to be removed. The procedure usually takes about ten minutes from start to delivery, with another 30-40 minutes for suturing. Patients are then brought to a recovery room, before going to the postpartum unit.

You can still breastfeed your baby after a C-section. In fact, as soon as you feel up to it you may begin nursing or pumping your milk if your baby is not immediately able to nurse.

Who Might Need a C-Section?

Situations where a C-Section might be required include:

• A baby that is too large to fit through the patient’s pelvis.
• Labor that is not progressing after a prolonged time.
• Fetal malpresentation (The baby is in breech position, or even sideways, and can't be manipulated to lie head-down).
• Fetal distress.
• Maternal medical conditions, including active herpes, diabetes, severe high blood pressure (Note, that these are not always reasons for a C-Section).
• Placenta previa (the placenta partly or completely covers the cervix, which would lead to excessive bleeding during labor and delivery).
• Prolapsed cord (the umbilical cord enters the birth canal before the baby does, which might mean a loss of blood supply to the baby during birth).
• Repeat cesarean (if you think you are heading for a repeat C-section, ask your provider if Vaginal Birth After Cesarean [VBAC] is possible for you).

Bridgeport Hospital offers patients delayed cord clamping (DCC), the practice of waiting to clamp the umbilical cord after birth, allowing beneficial blood, iron, stem cells, and antibodies to flow from the placenta to the baby.

We strive to give you the birth experience that you have planned. For those having a vaginal birth, we offer natural comfort measures including:

• Jacuzzi tubs
• Birthing balls
• Yoga balls or peanut balls
• Squatting bars
• Showers
• Rocking chairs

We encourage you to discuss anesthesia options with your obstetrician or an obstetric anesthesiologist, to make the choice that is best for you and your baby. Some patients may not want any pain relief medication while others may want some. We have anesthesiologists available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Pain management options we offer include:

• Intravenous or Intramuscular Medication:  Your obstetrician or midwife may order a medication to be injected into your intravenous line or your muscle to help reduce anxiety, improve relaxation and lessen, but not eliminate, labor pain. This will help make labor more comfortable but may make you sleepy.
• Epidural: This is the most common form of anesthesia to make patients comfortable during labor and delivery. Medication is injected below where the spinal cord ends. This will cause a tingling, warm, numb sensation in your abdomen and legs. You will stay awake and be conscious. Your legs may feel heavier over time, and you will not be able to get out of bed. Many patients continue to feel a tightening or pressure sensation during contractions, but it is not painful. Your anesthesiologist may allow one family member to be present during the procedure. If you have an epidural during labor, it can also be used for a Cesarean birth, but a stronger medication will be given to you. Your abdomen will become very numb, and your legs will feel very heavy. You will feel some pressure during the Cesarean birth, but you will be comfortable.
• Spinal Anesthesia:  If you do not have an epidural during labor, the anesthesiologist will inject spinal anesthesia for your Cesarean birth, which will cause your abdomen to become very numb and your legs to feel very heavy. The medication acts very quickly. You will feel some pressure during the Cesarean birth, but you will be comfortable. Those who choose this option are usually awake during delivery.
• Local Anesthesia:  You may receive a local anesthesia injected into the tissue around the birth canal during delivery. This will numb the birth canal and surrounding areas, making you more comfortable.
• General anesthesia (reserved for emergency deliveries), in which you remain unconscious through the delivery.
• A transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block is a regional anesthetic that can be used to manage pain after a C-section.

After your baby is born, he or she will be placed on your abdomen for skin-to-skin contact. Skin-to-skin helps with temperature regulation, family bonding and breastfeeding, if you decide to do so. Your baby will be brought to the infant warmer if additional assistance is needed.

Soon after birth, your baby will have two identification bracelets placed on them. Parents will have matching guardian wrist bands to help identify which baby is yours. The security tag alerts staff when it is tampered with or upon exit of the unit, ensuring that your baby is secured. The security tag will be removed by staff at discharge.

If your baby is in need of a higher level of care, have peace-of-mind knowing that our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is part of one of the country’s leading children’s hospitals, Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital.