Labor and delivery

Birthing center in the Silicon Valley

The birthing center at Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose, California, is designed to meet the unique needs of you and your growing family.

Delivering over 3,000 babies a year in our private, non-teaching community hospital, Good Samaritan Hospital’s experienced maternity team includes obstetricians, nurses, lactation consultants, and a 24/7 pediatric hospitalist who are available to help throughout your hospital stay. Additionally, we have an on-site neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), so we can provide specialized care for your baby if they need more specialized medical attention following birth.

Birthing center amenities

For more than 50 years, Good Samaritan Hospital has been helping prepare new parents for their baby's arrival in a safe and nurturing environment. You can count on a safe, stress-free environment for you and your baby. We offer:

• 16 spacious birthing suites with private postpartum mother-baby suites
• 11 private antepartum rooms
• Wireless fetal monitoring and birthing balls which allows for mobility of the expectant mother during labor
• Support for both un-medicated (pain medication-free) and medicated births
• Direct skin-to-skin contact between mother/father and baby during the important “Golden Hour” (the first hour after birth)
• 24/7 anesthesiologist dedicated to labor and delivery
• 24/7 obstetric emergency hospitalist dedicated to labor and delivery
• 24/7 availability of Maternal Fetal Medicine specialists to address needs of high-risk pregnancies
• Perinatal navigator to help coordinate care and meet the special needs of the high-risk patients
• 45 bed Level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) with NICVIEW^TM 24/7 video streaming, pediatric surgery and cooling capability
• Rooming-in after delivery allowing you to share the same room with your baby
• Expert certified lactation services
• Parenting support services, including childbirth classes and our new online mother support group

Tour our maternity unit

Watch our birthing center tour video or register for a maternity tour where you will learn more about the admissions process, where to go on delivery day, and information on the types of treatment, care and comfort you can expect at our birthing center. You will also be able to view our labor and delivery rooms and mother-baby suites.

Register for virtual maternity tour

Maternity classes and parenting support services

Our hospital offers many different classes to help expectant parents prepare for life with their newborn. Our maternity classes are instructed by highly trained healthcare professionals who are committed to newborn education. Classes cover topics including childbirth, baby care basics, breastfeeding, infant and child CPR, car safety and the early days of parenting.

We are currently offering these virtual classes and support groups:

• Breastfeeding 101
• Breastfeeding Consultation
• New Mother’s Support Group
• Prenatal Education Bootcamp
• Understanding Childbirth
• Understanding Cesarean Birth
• Understanding Breastfeeding
• Understanding Your Newborn

Virtual Childbirth Classes

In partnership with Birthly, Good Samaritan Hospital is pleased to Certified Childbirth Educators will provide live and interactive teaching sessions through video feed. From the comfort of your home or office mothers can learn more about Prenatal Education Care and Postpartum Strategies or participate in an introductory to Breastfeeding 101.

Virtual Breastfeeding Consultation

In partnership with Nest Collaborative, Good Samaritan is pleased to offer Virtual Breastfeeding Consultation. Once discharged from the hospital, it’s natural for many mothers to have questions regarding feeding tips and their new baby. These board-certified lactation consultants offer on-demand virtual appointments at your convenience.

Neonatal intensive care

When you give birth at our hospital, your child has access to our top-quality Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). This means that if your baby requires additional medical attention following birth, they can receive the advanced care they need while you recover. Newborns in our NICU receive 24-hour monitoring from a team of expertly trained staff.

High-risk pregnancy care

Our hospital has a 11-bed antepartum unit that provides specialized care for women experiencing pregnancy complications, such as gestational diabetes or premature labor. A woman may be admitted to our antepartum unit prior to labor and delivery to monitor her and her baby's health or after delivery to care for high-risk mothers with a child in the NICU.

Women in our antepartum unit benefit from:

• 24-hour on-site obstetrician gynecologist (OB/GYN) hospitalists and anesthesia providers
• Consultations from maternal-fetal medicine specialists
• Diabetes education
• Dietary consultations
• Prenatal neonatologist consultations for your newborn

Perinatal navigator

Sometimes a pregnancy does not go as smoothly as expected. It can be overwhelming to navigate multiple doctor’s visits, information, and emotions. A Perinatal Navigator is a registered nurse positioned within the hospital to provide an extra layer of educational and emotional support and that one constant point of contact throughout your High-Risk Pregnancy.

Meet Chisteena: Good Samaritans’ perinatal navigator

Chisteena’s career has always revolved around the care of mothers and babies. As a labor and delivery nurse, she took a particular interest in the most complex of cases. As a perinatal navigator, Chisteena aims to provide that extra layer of educational and emotional support as well as being that one constant point of contact throughout your high-risk pregnancy journey. Chisteena will be there along the way, one day, one week and one month at a time.

A perinatal navigator can:

• Answer questions related to your prenatal, pregnancy or postpartum experience
• Assist you with coordinating and preparing for various subspecialty appointments
• Direct you to resources at our facility such as parent education classes and facility tours
• Facilitate communication between physicians, nurses and other members of your care team
• Follow-up after delivery with subspecialists or other needs

High-risk pregnancy, maternal, and fetal conditions managed

Pregnancy conditions that we manage:

• Preterm birth
  • preterm labor, short cervix, cerclage both abdominal and vaginal
• Bleeding
  • placenta previa, placenta accreta, placental abruption
• Blood pressure problems
  • gestational hypertension, preeclampsia

Maternal conditions that we manage:

• Heart disorders
  • congenital heart disease, arrhythmias, hypertension, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, valvular disease
• Lung problems
  • asthma, pneumonia, restrictive lung disease, cystic fibrosis
• Obesity
• Endocrine disorders
  • diabetes, thyroid disease, parathyroid disease, addison’s disease
• Digestive disorders
  • inflammatory bowel disease, gallbladder disease, pancreatitis
• Blood disorders
  • hemoglobinopathies, sickle cell disease, Von Willebrand disease, platelet disorders, venous thromboembolism, inherited thrombophilia
• Kidney disorders
  • pregnancy after kidney transplant, nephropathy, chronic renal insufficiency
• Brain disorders
  • seizure disorders, headache, AV malformation, aneurysm, multiple sclerosis, myasthenia gravis, pseudotumor cerebra, spinal cord injury
• Immune disorders
  • systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, antiphospholipid syndrome
• Non-obstetric abdominal surgery in the current pregnancy
• Bone, Cartilage, and Skin Disorders
  • marfan syndrome, skeletal dysplasia

Fetal conditions that we manage:

• Congenital anomalies
  • ventriculomegaly, cleft lip/palate, pierre robin sequence, ventricular septal defect, coarctation, atrioventricular septal defect, congenital pulmonary airway malformation, gastroschisis, omphalocele, abdominal/pelvic mass, renal anomalies, skeletal anomalies - club foot
• Chromosome problems
  • Down syndrome (trisomy 21), Trisomy 13 and Trisomy 18
• Genetic syndromes
• Twins and higher order multiples
• Monochorionic twin complications
• Umbilical cord issues such as vasa previa
• Fetal growth restriction
• Alloimmunization
• Neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia
• Nonimmune fetal hydrops
• Fetal demise

Preparing for your hospital stay

Preparing for labor and delivery can seem like an overwhelming task, but we are here to ensure the process goes as smoothly as possible. For example, you can preregister online ahead of childbirth. You can also download and complete the obstetrical admission form prior to your hospital stay, which you can either bring with you on delivery day or fax beforehand to (408) 559-2675.

What to bring to the hospital for childbirth

When you are packing your hospital bag before delivery, here are a few things to consider bringing:

• Bathrobe
• Blanket for your baby (We provide wrappings for baby, but many parents like to have a special blanket from home as well.)
• Car seat to bring baby home in (Please note that the law requires new parents to have a car seat ready when they are leaving the hospital.)
• Change of clothes
• Electronic devices and chargers, including cameras and phones
• Gown or pajamas
• Music
• Toiletries

Should you need additional items, we have an on-site store with a variety of nursing equipment.

Labor induction process

Labor induction, or induced labor, is the process of helping labor begin through medications or other medical interventions. Labor may be induced for several reasons, such as protecting the health of the mother or baby if they are at risk.

Who can have labor induction?

Based on your doctor's recommendations and expertise, you may be able to electively choose to be induced at a certain time. However, this should not occur prior to the 39th week of pregnancy.

Sometimes, labor induction is unsuccessful. In these cases, a doctor may try induction at a later date or consider a Cesarean section (C-section).

How long does labor take after induction?

Labor induction can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days depending on each woman's circumstances. Labor does not begin when induction begins. Labor is defined through regular contractions and dilation of the cervix. Active labor does not begin until a woman reaches a dilation of 6 centimeters. Complete dilation occurs at 10 cm.

Is labor induction safe?

It is a medically safe process, and we have safeguards in place to ensure the mother's and child's health.

Read our labor support booklet

Postpartum care

Following delivery, you and your baby will bond during the "golden hour" — when your child becomes acquainted with you immediately after birth through skin-to-skin contact. Immediate skin-to-skin contact also provides the opportunity to begin breastfeeding, if you choose to and are medically able to use this method of feeding. We have lactation consultants on staff who are available to help you throughout the breastfeeding process.

Visiting information

We offer private rooms and use electronic security monitoring systems to keep your baby safe throughout your stay. You are only allowed two visitors at a time in your room. However, our spacious waiting area is able to accommodate your other guests between visits.

Visiting hours occur daily from 2:00pm to 8:00pm.

In order to enhance your birthing experience, Good Samaritan Hospital has updated visitors’ policies:

Visitors

• CDPH no longer requires visitors to show proof of vaccination or be tested to visit patients; and
• Visitors are still required to wear masks throughout the facilities. Masks and signs will be placed at each entrance.
• Visiting hours will be 8:00am to 8:00pm for Good Samaritan Hospital
• Screeners will no longer be placed at entrances

Labor and Delivery (L & D)

The following is in addition to, or in lieu of, the general visiting procedures:

• Visiting hours are 24 hours per day. Two primary support persons of the patient’s choosing may be with the patient in labor at any time; this number may be limited in any hospital-wide, citywide, countrywide, statewide or national emergency.
• Siblings of the newborn may visit but must be supervised by an adult at all times and may not be left unattended.
• One (1) family support person may be present during Cesarean delivery, with MD approval.

Post-Partum (Mother-Baby)

• The primary support person may remain at the bedside over-night if the mother is in private room.
• One chair bed is normally able to be provided in a post -partum room.
• Siblings of the newborn may visit but must be supervised by an adult at all times and may not be left unattended.

Antepartum

• Family and friends may visit following the general Hospital visiting policy. Infants may remain with their mother; Siblings of the newborn may visit but must be accompanied by an adult who is not the patient at all times.
• On occasion, it may be necessary to be more restrictive with visiting.