Labor and delivery

We want you to have a positive birthing experience, which is why we offer a wide range of helpful services and amenities, including:

• 24/7 visitation from friends and family
• Anesthesiologist on-site 24/7 to assist with emergency cesarean sections (C-sections)
• Dedicated infant protection system
• In-room sleeping arrangement for spouse, partner or chosen support person
• Locked unit for the security of you and your newborn
• Pain management options, including epidural and intravenous (IV) pain medication
• Private rooms featuring a bathroom, bathtub, couch, television and comfortable furnishings

To learn more about our labor and delivery services, please call (352) 333-5300.

Our maternity services are designed to ease the stress often associated with the immediate postpartum period. Our staff includes a board-certified lactation consultant who is readily available to assist with breastfeeding and answer any questions about infant feeding.

For the last 30 years, we have hosted in-person weekly postpartum lunches every Tuesday in the South Tower Conference Center from 11:30am to 2:00pm. If you gave birth at The Women's Center and have been discharged, you are welcome to attend. These luncheons offer support and an opportunity to connect with other new mothers. You can enjoy lunch, learn about a variety of parenting and infant-related topics and receive lactation advice in a supportive environment.

To learn more about our breastfeeding support services, please call our Lactation Services (352) 333-5315.

If a higher level of care is needed, our 25-bed, Level III NICU is staffed by maternal-fetal medicine specialists who are ready to help. Our NICU is located on the third floor of our hospital's South Tower. Here, we provide medical care to newborns with complicated medical conditions that require additional monitoring and premature babies born as early as 24 weeks.

We partner with the Milk Bank of Florida to provide a breastmilk donation program for mothers in our area with an abundance of breastmilk that want to donate to babies in need.

The Milk Bank of Florida is a nonprofit organization that collects, processes, pasteurizes and dispenses donor breast milk to NICU babies and other medically needy infants in our state.

Eligible breast milk donors are healthy women who produce more milk than needed to feed their own infants. Instead of discarding this milk, eligible donors can freeze and voluntarily donate their milk to our program. We ensure it is properly frozen and stored until collection from the Milk Bank of Florida.

If you are interested in becoming a donor, please follow these easy steps:

• Call (407) 248-5050 for a short telephone interview.
• Complete a secure online health questionnaire.
• Grant permission to contact health care providers.
• Complete a free blood screening.
• Drop off your frozen breast milk to our hospital's Breastmilk Donation Program.

This program is located in the Medical Arts Building:
6400 W. Newberry Road, Suite 107
Gainesville, FL 32605

Donations are accepted on Wednesdays from 2:00pm to 5:00pm and Thursdays and Fridays from 9:00am to noon.

Please call (352) 333-5314 or (352) 333-5327 with questions.

Our childbirth team is staffed by a variety of specialists who will meet your needs before, during and after delivery. The team includes:

• Anesthesiologists
• Gynecologists
• Labor and delivery nurses
• Lactation consultants
• Nurse midwives
• Obstetricians