Abbott Northwestern Vs. Fairview Southdale and Any OB Recommendations at Either?

I have had two babies at Abbott and would highly recommend. The reason most of the people I know choose Abbott over another hospital is simple - it's right next to Children's. If there is any kind of emergency, and you need the best infant care, you want to be at Children's. I also give a big second to Women's Health Consultants. They are a GREAT practice of all female doctors.

A doula is highly worth it. My husband and I hired one and were very satisfied. I was in labor for almost 2 days, and our doula was vibrant and strong and energetic the whole time! I second the other person who recommends using a midwife if you have a normal, uncomplicated pregnancy. They are generally very hands-on and attentive during the pregnancy and birth. I am not sure why you have narrowed your choices down by hospital. The doctor/midwife you choose is much more important than the building that you deliver your baby in. Both Southdale and Abbott have the highest C-section rates, I've been told. This information is very difficult to get when you are inquiring though.

Whatever you decide, I'm sure everything will go fine. Congratulations!

I delivered at Abbott, and was glad because I ended up having a baby at 34 weeks, it was comforting knowing that a neonatologist would be there to examine her immediately after birth and that Children's hospital was connected to Abbott. She stayed in the special care nursery at Abbott, but while I was there, I saw many preemies who ended up having to transfer over to Children's.
All of the nursers were full of information and helped a lot with nursing and gave lots of advice.
The post partum rooms at Abbott, was super small, but they send you home fairly quickly.LR

I highly recommend Dr. Donna Block at Sophia Clinic in the Southdale Medical building. She delivers at Southdale. She is wonderful and highly respected.

Congratulations to you and your husband.

L.-
I had both of my daughters at Fairview Southdale and it was a great experience both times. I would highly recommend this hospital as the nurses are great especially Judy Adams. Lucky me had her for both deliveries and she's great! As for female OB's, I would also highly recommend Southdale OBGYN which is right across from the hospital. Dr. Kathy Tweedy has been my doctor since I moved back here in 2001 and saw me through both pregnancies. You can tell she enjoys what she does and I can't say enough about her bedside manner. She takes the time during appts to answer any questions or concerns you may have and talks you through the process. Having said that, my experience with other doctors there has been just as good! Dr. Heather McKay delivered both of my girls (It just worked out that way with her being the dr. on call) and she is also really good! She brought a calmness to the room during delivery that this first and second time mom needed. Good luck in your search and I hope this was helpful for you but my vote is definitely for Fairview Southdale and any dr. at Southdale OB. Enjoy your pregnancy as it's so amazing and does go so fast!
A. F.

I too am wondering why just ANW or Fairview Southdale? I delivered at HCMC and was very happy as well. On of my dear friends runs the Labor and Delivery service at St. John's Maplewood. At HCMC, they have midwives, doulas, a wonderful unit, neonatal intensive care unit and a very up to date testing unit. From the posts so far I can see that you can see that people like or dislike whereever they go based on personal stuff. I chose HCMC because it was convenient, I trusted the staff completely and the facility was recently updated and peaceful. I also suggest midwives if your pregnancy is routine. If not, HCMC OB Dr. Virgina Lupo and Dr. Laura Coultrip are really experienced at all kinds of "stuff". Good luck and congratulations. One thing that I learned that we can only control so much and a leap of faith at some point is going to be important. Good and bad things can happen anywhere - we just need to stay alert and work with our partners and experts.

I work in a birthplace at another hospital, so I'm curious about why you chose Abbott and Southdale over other hospitals. We have a ton of great female midwives/OBs who offer wonderful care. If you don't want to elaborate, no big deal. Just curious about what you're looking for in a hospital so we can help you out.

If you are delivering within the next month, we may see you at Abbott! :-) I have delivered at Abbott twice already, and have used Women's Health Consultants both times - they only deliver at Abbott, and one of their two offices is right across the street. They have quite a large group of doctors, all women, and I've enjoyed all of their staff including the nurse practitioners. I think the group is very knowledgeable, cutting-edge, professional, and caring. I used a doula for my first pregnancy because I was alone with no one to assist me (no husband or family), and my husband and I have also retained a doula for this pregnancy because we feel pretty rusty with our knowledge/skills. We got a free doula this time via the spinningbabies.com website, and I had a discounted-price, student doula last time. I would suspect the doula would be worth the price depending upon your reasons for wanting one, and your specific circumstances.

Feel free to email if you think I can answer any more questions for you, and good luck!!!!
T.

I don't have any experience with either hospital but I delivered at Woodwinds and it was the best experience I could have asked for. My OB was just downstairs at the Adefris and Toppin office and they are both women who are absolute ROCK STARS! If I were you, I would check it out before making a final decision. Good luck to yo!

I delivered once at Methodist and once at Abbott and had a much better experience at Abbott. Everyone at Abbott treated me as a customer and not just a patient; making sure that I was getting the experience that I wanted. They were very sensitive to my needs and requests vs. at Methodist which very much operated in a way that made their lives easier. While a lot have recommended mid-wives, I caution you about the choice. I used a mid-wife program for my first child and was very unhappy. I didn't end up getting my mid-wife on the day that I delivered and actually went through 3 different ones during labor. While they all told me it was my delivery and they would support anything I chose, I found that they very much had their own beliefs and ideas and were trying to manage me to agree to them (no drugs, vaccuum etc). Also, they are unable to perform certain procedures and I ended up having an OB/GYN deliver my son in the end as I needed to have a vaccuum to help him over my pelvic bone. I used an OB for my second child and had MY doctor actually deliver my daughter; someone I had a relationship with and who understood what I wanted.

Hi L.,

I delivered my twins at Fairview Southdale and the staff were great! When I came in to deliver @ the birthplace they were ready and waiting for me, so it felt good. We had the boys when Fairview Southdale was still under construction, so I can only imagine how the place looks now - and how quieter it must be. Since I was having twins we all knew there was going to be a chance for a very early delivery, and Abbott was the backup if they were born too early (before 32 weeks).

If your pregnancy is relatively uncomplicated - I would recommend a midwife for a first time mom. We met a great midwife when I first found out I was pregnant, but when we realized we were having twins we had to have an OB since midwives are legally prohibited from managing a twin pregnancy. Midwives are better with the human side of pregnancy and ours was Torri Washington with Aspen Medical Group. Her number is ###-###-####.

Our OB was Dr. Sharon Kshettry - who was with Aspen at the time but now has her own practice in Edina. Her number is ###-###-####. She was very professional and knowledgeable no matter what issue that may have been a problem with my pregnancy. When it came time to deliver, there were 14 people in the room with us (waaaay more than normal but because I was high risk). Although I was too high on epidural to notice, my fiance said that Dr. Kshettry was the most focused and professional one in the room - even though it was 4 a.m. and we KNEW she had clincial later that day. He was extremely greatful she did the delivery and said that if we ever had more kids he would want her to be in the delivery room.

I don't know what Abbott is like, so it's hard for me to compare and say which is better, but I do know we would choose Fairview Southdale again if we could.

Good luck!

K.