Patient & Visitor Information
Having a baby is an exciting and sometimes hectic time. At NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital, we strive to ensure that you have a high quality and compassionate experience. We have compiled useful information here to help ease your stay.
Packing your maternity bag
We recommend you pack a bag in advance of your due date with necessities and going-home clothes for you and your baby.
For you:
- Personal care items such as deodorant, shampoo and conditioner, toothpaste and mouthwash, lotion, soap, and hairbrush and hairdryer. We will provide sanitary napkins and stretch panties after delivery.
- Nightgowns or pajamas, a robe, slippers, bras and underwear, and nursing bras if you plan to breastfeed.
- Please do not bring large amounts of cash, credit cards, or jewelry.
For your baby's trip home:
- An undershirt
- An outfit
- Receiving blankets
- Car seat
Before you arrive
If you believe that you are in labor, call the OB-GYN or midwife on call.
- We understand how important the support of your loved ones is to you when you are having a baby. When you come to the hospital, you may bring one support person or doula. The same person may stay with you the entire time — through labor and delivery, during recovery immediately after the baby is born, and during your postpartum stay.
- Whether you come in through the front door or the Emergency Department, you will be directed to a triage room in the Maternal & Newborn Care Unit on the second floor. We will be expecting you and will greet you at the reception area.
- During triage, we perform tests such as fetal monitoring, ask you what you are feeling, and perform an exam and sometimes lab tests. Based on our assessment, we will either tell you to go back home until you are further along in labor, be observed, or be admitted to a labor and delivery room. We encourage you to ask any questions you may have during this time.
Please bring the following information with you to the hospital. This will help the admission process go smoothly.
- Complete list of all the prescription and over-the-counter medications that you are currently taking
- Reports your doctor gave you to bring to the hospital
- Medical insurance information, including insurance cards, pre-certification, and other documentation required by your insurer
- Personal identification, such as a driver's license, passport, or other appropriate identification
- List of telephone numbers of immediate family members to call, if necessary
During childbirth
Labor and delivery: Each private labor and delivery room has a homelike atmosphere and features a soaking tub, which some women find eases the discomfort of labor. During labor, you will be attached to a fetal monitor to ensure your baby remains safe. The monitor is wireless so you can move about the room freely if you wish. You also have a choice of music during delivery, if you desire. There is a pullout couch for your support partner to rest.
Communication: We maintain open communication with you regarding pain management and your progress during labor. Our team is there to teach you how to push and to coach and support you during labor.
Once your baby arrives: If there are no complications or need for immediate care after your baby is born, we turn down the lights and allow you, your partner, and your baby to have quiet, private time together. We encourage skin-to-skin contact between you and your baby and between your baby and your partner to promote bonding and create an intimate setting for the three of you as a family. We delay eye drops, weight-taking, and cord cutting until after this "Golden Hour" has passed.
If you deliver your baby via C-section, we will place your baby cheek to cheek with you after birth and then give the baby to your partner to bond skin-to-skin in the recovery room until you are able to join them.
During your stay
After delivery
Post-partum rooms: You will be moved to a private, comfortable postpartum room for the remainder of your stay. We encourage "rooming in" as much as possible, with the baby staying in the room with you and having all examinations and infant care performed there. We also do our best to take your vital signs only when needed and not during the night, if possible, so you can rest.
There is a comfortable bed for your partner in your room so he or she can stay overnight if desired. You will find the postpartum room resembles a hotel room more than a hospital room. Each room includes a private bathroom with a walk-in shower, temperature controls, and adjustable lighting.
Infant safety: Your baby will have a special bracelet with a security tag to ensure that he or she remains safely on the unit.
Meals: Hospital meals are available for you and your support partner. You may also order in takeout and send your partner to pick it up in the lobby.
Support services: Breastfeeding support is available from our nurses and lactation consultants for mothers who wish to nurse their babies.
Interpreter Services: Interpreter services are available by phone and video for patients and partners throughout your hospital stay. Communication access for patients/families with limited English proficiency (LEP), speech or a visual impairment, or who are deaf or hard of hearing can be arranged by a member of our staff, free of charge. Please let a member of our staff know if you will need this service, and we will arrange it for you.
Services for the Visually Impaired: If you are visually impaired, our staff will assist you with forms. The Patient Bill of Rights and various selected forms are available in Braille.
Visiting policy
We understand that you value the support of your loved ones when you are in the hospital. Please review our current visitor policy.
Preparing to go home
Typically women who have had a vaginal birth stay in the hospital for 24 hours and those who had a C-section stay 48 hours. Both your obstetrician and pediatrician must authorize discharge for you and your baby. When your doctor tells you that you and your baby are ready to go home, your nurses will discuss ongoing care with you. Our nurses will educate you about what to expect as your body recovers from childbirth. We will give you a discharge booklet that explains all you need to know.
We will also perform a test of your baby's hearing and car seat before you go home. Our team will continue to check in with you once you are home to see how you are doing and answer any questions you may have.