Over 4,200 births occur every year at Humber River Hospital. For every new parent, baby, and family member involved in those labours and deliveries, Humber has intentionally thought about how to make the experience much more than what one typically expects of a hospital. Beyond the hospital's medical expertise in labour and delivery, patients often choose to receive care at Humber, from pregnancy to postpartum, because they are cared for in a thoughtfully curated physical space with comprehensive medical support and access to meaningful services. Choosing to have a baby at Humber is choosing to ease the stressors that many expectant and new parents face.
Humber keeps patients and families at the centre of its approach to care across all hospital operations and departments. Part of this is recognizing the barriers patients often face in accessing and receiving healthcare. In the Maternity and Child Unit, this means actively working to alleviate the challenges faced in guiding one's own patient journey throughout pregnancy. Understanding what patients must navigate has informed the services, types of care, support, and spaces that Humber provides for patients throughout their pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum care.
Thoughtful Spaces
Among the first things patients notice in Humber's Maternity and Child Unit are the thoughtful space and design considerations that prioritize the privacy and comfort of patients and their families – two elements of a hospital experience that are often commiserated over, and that heavily impact how people feel in this type of setting. At Humber, patients labour and deliver in private, and spacious birthing units to help labouring moms and their support partners feel more comfortable and empowered during delivery.
For recovery, they are moved to the Mother and Baby Unit – where all patients have a private, single room equipped with a pullout couch or bed to ensure the support person can stay and sleep comfortably. This space is intended to support and encourage family bonding, rest, and healing in a comfortable and relaxing environment. Typically, outside of Humber, this feature is only accessible based on availability and for those individuals who have insurance or can pay for it. Humber prioritizes equity for all recovering families.
There are so many life changing moments for new parents throughout and after delivery, some of which can be overwhelming. Trying to establish a “new normal" and navigating activities like meals and phone calls with a new baby can feel challenging to undertake. Bedside terminals in the Mother and Baby Units at Humber connect patients to care resources, such as the ability to order food and drink, make phone calls, as well as access the internet, television channels, music, and games. This is specifically intended to ease the added challenges new parents face in order to further enable rest and relaxation.
The thoughtfulness of the layout and design in the Maternity and Child Unit also extends to medical situations where a baby may require care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The NICU consists of five pods, each with four rooms where one baby and family stay at a time. Each pod is overseen by a dedicated nursing team that has central access to the care rooms, and the single rooms allow families privacy and added comfort during these challenging and often stressful situations. Knowing that being in the NICU adds a layer of mental, emotional, and physical concerns, this space was designed to prioritize the medical needs of babies and respect the experience of families – helping them stay closer to their babies than traditional NICUs may allow.
Infrastructure and design are not commonly focused on when discussing the specialties of hospitals where healthcare delivery is always the priority, though Humber makes the appeal for more consideration of the physical spaces that hospitals provide for patients. This proved to be especially paramount to maintaining a positive patient care experience during the pandemic. The layout of the Maternity and Child Unit, as well as NICU, naturally promotes distancing between patients and the private rooms minimize the risk of spreading viruses and illnesses. Because of this, patients at Humber have been able to experience added peace of mind while in the hospital.
Comprehensive Care
While considerations of physical space contribute to patient experiences, receiving expert and compassionate medical care is always the top priority. Pregnancy, preparation for delivery, and navigating all the various forms of care new parents and families may require can be overwhelming. Traditionally, expectant moms may have to go to a range of locations or clinics to access the specific kind of care or health support they need. For example, patients may go to a midwifery clinic for milestone appointments throughout pregnancy, but are also expected to coordinate with their hospital for their delivery plans, and may have to see specialists in other areas. Recognizing that this can add to the burden that expecting moms face, Humber has built a multidisciplinary team of obstetricians, gynecologists, high-risk pregnancy specialists, neonatologists, nurses, doctors, midwives, surgeons, and others, equalling over 100 staff at the hospital to support patients throughout their pregnancy with one organized, collaborative health team.
During pregnancy, patients who have medical conditions can visit a dedicated Obstetrical Medicine clinic where they can be followed closely in conjunction with the obstetrics team. In addition, they can access a 24/7 obstetrical ultrasound to enable early detection of any complications. Online prenatal classes are available for free to patients, and lactation consultants are available seven days a week to provide in hospital teaching and care.
Access to various medical specialties under one roof gives patients peace of mind, as does knowing their care is integrated with Humber's digital Command Centre, a first-in-Canada technology. The Command Centre is integrated directly with the Maternity and Child Unit and provides real-time monitoring of patients and their babies to deliver tailored and timely care. The Command Centre's monitoring can detect potential health risks and factors early, and allow intervention to be initiated quickly when and if needed. The Command Centre is another layer of safety and precaution that contributes to the level of confidence patients have while at the hospital.
Meaningful Support
Humber continues the theme of cohesive and convenient care by creating a long-term relationship as a post care provider for the families who have their babies at the hospital. From expert pediatric care to community partnerships tailored towards parent, family, and child well-being, families are supported as their child grows and develops. Humber partners with organizations like West End Midwives, Sick Kids General Surgery, Insception Lifebank and Victoria Angel cord blood banks, as well as the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Clinic in partnership with St. Michael's Hospital – providing easier access to the vital specialized healthcare services that children may require. Humber also recently launched its first-ever 12-week Postpartum Support Group to support new moms, where women are encouraged and support each other as they navigate the dynamics of early parenthood. All of this goes the extra mile to provide accessible and holistic care and support for patients.
Humber genuinely cares about the experience patients have and has considered the many details that impact pregnancy, labour, delivery, and postpartum. Improving upon these details helps ensure that a patient can have a more positive pregnancy and birth experience and that the family can feel rested and prepared to bring their baby home. This contributes to a more manageable and enjoyable time adjusting to the changes of parenthood, so parents can comfortably support the care that their child needs as they grow. Humber pays attention to the details that have a positive impact on patients and their families – and that's what makes a difference.
To learn more about the Maternal and Child program at Humber River Hospital, please visit maternal.hrh.ca.