Women & Infants Hospital will renovate its suite of labor and delivery rooms, pending state approval

PROVIDENCE – Women & Infants Hospital, a Care New England facility, seeks to renovate its labor and delivery suite. To that end, it filed its letter of intent on Nov. 22 with the R.I. Department of Health for its proposal, “Women & Infants Hospital Labor & Delivery Renovation”; the letter of intent is the first step in the hospital’s plan to file its certificate of need application in January 2017.

Women & Infants Hospital, one of the nation’s largest stand-alone obstetrical services, delivered more than 8,800 babies last year. Its current labor and delivery suite was designed in 1986, and since that time, the hospital has witnessed significant changes in its patient population as well as models of care and new technologies. Specifically, the hospital reports that it has an increased number of patients with significant chronic illnesses who require specialized monitoring and care; adopted an electronic medical records system; and instituted a team-based model of care that includes patients and families in all aspects of care.

“As a specialty hospital with a unique focus, Women & Infants is a well-cherished jewel, providing incomparable care to the women and newborns of our region. Each and every day, I am honored by the women and families who choose to share with us some of the most precious moments of their lives – the delivery of a child, Women & Infants President and CEO Mark R. Marcantano said in a statement. “But our physical environment in labor and delivery no longer provides the optimal support for today’s modern birth approach. It’s time for our physical environment in labor and delivery to match the incredible level of clinical care provided here.”

Women & Infants’ labor and delivery suite includes 19 private labor/delivery/recovery rooms and an Alternative Birthing Center that offers a high-touch, home-like, midwife-led birthing experience for low-risk births. There are also three dedicated Cesarean birth rooms and a recovery area. The new project, if approved by DOH, will renovate 20 labor rooms – the 19 private rooms and the ABC – and will increase the room size from 220 square feet to the current guidelines of 400 square feet, with a private bathroom and shower in each room.

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The project design will be based on a universal room that exceeds the needs for all levels of patient- and family-centered care, and will integrate the newest technologies and include upgrades to the electrical, HVAC, plumbing and medical gasses systems, the hospital reported.

The renovation, with a projected cost of approximately $18.6 million, is scheduled to be completed in October 2018 will be done in phases over 14-16 months so as to minimize disruptions to existing service.

“Having a baby is a wonderful experience for a family,” Dr. James A. O’Brien, director of inpatient obstetrics and an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, said in the statement. “We want to provide the highest level of complex care when necessary, but also provide a warm, personal and engaging experience, with hidden technology that is only used as needed.”

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