Some pregnancies and newborns require special attention and care. You can be completely healthy, but conditions like type-1 diabetes and high blood pressure, even if well-managed, can make your pregnancy be considered “high-risk.” A high-risk pregnancy means that you need to deliver your baby at a hospital suited you and your baby’s unique needs.
More than 2,000 women with high-risk pregnancies are treated in the Perinatal Special Care Unit (PSCU) at the MemorialCare Center for Women at Long Beach Memorial and Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach each year. The PSCU care team monitors the health of mom and baby, reviews any advanced tests or ultrasounds that may be needed and offers counseling. Treatment for complications in pregnancy ranges from weekly or monthly ultrasound monitoring to complex intravenous infusions and medication management.
Equipped with the latest monitoring technology, obstetricians and maternal-fetal specialists work with the care team of highly trained nurses and technicians to provide advanced monitoring, pain management and other support. The unit has a central monitoring system that allows for around-the-clock observation of any patient’s fetal heart tracing, from anywhere in the unit.
We have some of the most advanced pregnancy care around, but that doesn’t mean we skip on comfort for our moms and their significant others. Our Perinatal Special Care Unit is designed to provide a peaceful environment, the newly created private rooms give families their privacy and a place to heal. The spacious, natural light-filled rooms are an important part of this unit since many women faced with high-risk pregnancy may stay here several days or weeks, and sometimes even months before birth.
With Miller Children’s and Long Beach Memorial on the same campus, there is not only access to more than 30 specialties for mom and baby, but high-risk babies will have access to a leading regional Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Such designation means the unit must meet strict state regulatory criteria to provide the necessary care for premature infants. Cardiologists, dietitians, endocrinologists and more are available to meet the needs of mom and baby all under one roof.
Now that’s peace of mind.
For more information about the Perinatal Special Care Unit at the MemorialCare Center for Women, visit MillerChildrens.org/Maternity or call 800-MEMORIAL.