Health Services

Maternity Care

Wentworth-Douglass Hospital's Birth Center offers a wide variety of birthing options to support each family's unique and individual choices for maternity care. Through a strong collaborative relationship with the nursing and support staff at the Birth Center, our physicians and midwives strive to provide the highest quality of obstetrical care. Check out some of the maternity care options Dover Women's Health specializes in providing.

Visit Wentworth Douglass Hospital's Birthing Center for more information.

Midwifery Care

We offer obstetrical care through a midwifery model; our midwives work in conjunction with our physicians providing individualized care for low risk obstetrical patients.

Waterbirth

The providers at Dover Women's Health are proud to support water birth as an option to women in the Dover area. The Birth Center at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital has been offering water birth as a choice for over a year now, and even has a birthing tub specifically designed for this purpose. For women who are eligible, birthing in water can provide many advantages to mom and baby. Warm water in a tub allows for freedom of movement, muscle relaxation, and helps to create an intimate environment that can make labor more comfortable. The water also allows for optimal stretching of the perineal tissues, decreasing the incidence of perineal tearing. It has been anecdotally noted that newborns born into water have a very calm appearance. What a gentle way to arrive! Certain medical conditions preclude eligibility for birth under water, please call us and talk over this birthing option with one of our doctors or midwives. Water can be a great comfort in labor even for those not eligible for water birth. The Birth Center also has a Jacuzzi for use in labor, and there are showers in each of the labor/delivery/postpartum rooms.

Visit The Waterbirth Site for more information.

Hypnobirthing

What is hypnobirthing? Hypnobirthing is more a philosophy than a methodology. Hypnobirthing follows naturally from the belief that birth is a normal and healthy process that can be experienced and embraced joyfully. Hypnobirthing encourages women's natural instinct to give over to their birthing bodies.

How does it work? Hypnobirthing is about learning and practicing relaxation, breathing and visualization techniques that will allow you to work with your body during the birth of your baby. The tendency to fight against the pain of labor releases hormones called catecholemines. These hormones are constrictors, which work against a laboring woman's body. Conversely, a body that is relaxed and free of fear will release endorphins, the body's natural painkillers.

What you see is what you get: visualization is a key component to hypnobirthing. Picturing yourself having a problem-free pregnancy and delivery is important to creating that reality. Athletes prepare for races by picturing themselves as they maneuver each part of a race course. They see themselves edging out their competitors as they reach the finish line. The 2001 winner of the Australia triathlon said "This is what I had practiced over and over at the track in my mind. I had pictured this scenario a hundred times, and I knew I could stay ahead!" The mind is a powerful tool! Hypnobirthing uses this tool to help create a positive environment which helps ease a woman through the childbirth experience.

Dr. Segil is a certified hypnobirthing instructor. Classes are offered on a monthly basis through the Birth Center.

Visit www.hypnobirthing.com for more information.

Birthing Options

At Dover Women's Health, our goal is to support your choices for coping with any discomfort during the birthing process. For some women, water birth is the ideal. For others, learning a new skill such as Hypnobirthing is important. For many, comfort through the use of medications and epidurals during labor is desired. Our doctors and midwives are skilled at managing labors where medications and epidurals are implemented. Anesthesia is on call 24 hours a day for this purpose. In collaboration with the Birth Center nursing staff, we can help you decide which avenue will provide you with the most comfort during such an important occasion. Feel free to call us to discuss our philosophy and to share your thoughts, needs and desires.

Childbirth Education

The Birth Center at Wentworth-Douglass hospital offers a variety of education courses related to pregnancy, birth and infant feeding. Link here to some of the most up to date offerings in childbirth and parenting education.