Q: When will the existing Nurse Midwifery Birth Center close?

Answer: The staff at the Nurse Midwifery Birth Center will see their last patients at the current location on Thursday, July 9, 2009.

Q: Where will I go to receive Nurse Midwifery Birth Center services in the interim while the new birth center is being built?

Answer: Nurse Midwifery Birth Center services will relocate to the second floor of the PeaceHealth Medical Group Downtown Eugene clinic, located at 1162 Willamette St. in Eugene.

Q: When will services start at the temporary location?

Answer: Midwifery Birth Center staff will start seeing patients at the temporary 1162 Willamette St. location on Monday, July 13, 2009.

Q: What services will be available at the temporary location?

Answer: All prenatal and postpartum care will be available at the PHMG Downtown Eugene clinic at 1162 Willamette St. Well-woman exams will also take place at this location during the interim period.

Q: Where will I give birth after the existing birth center closes?

Answer: PeaceHealth Medical Group midwife-attended births will take place at Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend until the new birth center opens.

Q: When is construction starting on the new Nurse Midwifery Birth Center?

Answer: Groundbreaking on the new site is scheduled for Monday, July 13, 2009.

Q: How long until the new Midwifery Birth Center opens after construction begins?

Answer: Construction is scheduled to last for 9 –10 months.

Q: Where will the new Nurse Midwifery Birth Center be located?

Answer: The new Nurse Midwifery Birth Center will be located at 353 Deadmond Ferry Rd. in Springfield, just a quarter-mile from Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend.

Q: Why is the current birth center closing prior to the opening of the new one?

Answer: Sale of the existing birth center was one of two financial conditions PeaceHealth set for making a commitment to construct a new birth center. The other was successful completion of the Sacred Heart Medical Center Foundation’s community fund-raising campaign. It wasn’t feasible to begin construction on a new $1.2 million birth center until both conditions were met.

Q: Why don’t the interim plans include out-of-hospital births?

Answer: We tried to preserve an out-of-hospital option, but we were not able to negotiate a lease-back agreement with the buyers of the building for the interim construction period. Moving birth center clients to RiverBend’s birthing suites during the interim was not our first choice, but given our goal to make the best use of our limited resources, we made the decision to invest in the future birth center rather than the complex and costly process of developing an alternative interim location.

Q: What is the cost difference between a birth center birth and a midwife-attended hospital birth?

Answer: For a normal midwife-attended birth at Sacred Heart, the total estimated charge is $10,700. Of that total, the hospital charge is $6,600, and the midwife professional service charge is $4,100 (this cost is the same regardless of whether the patient delivers at the birth center or the hospital). For a normal birth center delivery, the total estimated charge is $6,100. Of that total, the facility and newborn charge is $2,000, and the professional service charge is $4,100. Laboratory procedures, ultrasounds and medications are billed separately at both facilities. PeaceHealth's Patient Financial Services will contact established birth center patients with regard to these changes. At that point, they may discuss payment plans and financial options if they have hardship or questions.

Q: Can we have a hospital orientation?

Answer: Yes, patients may schedule tours of the hospital’s birthing suites using a computer available at this meeting, or online at www.peacehealth.org/birthtours

Q: Why am I just learning of all of this now?

Answer: A combination of factors — including PeaceHealth’s effort to find an interim out-of-hospital solution and the unpredictable nature of a complex, ongoing real estate negotiation — created a lack of certainty about when plans would be firm enough to communicate. As soon as we were reasonably sure the sale of the existing birth center was going to go through, we pulled out all the stops to communicate with everyone and the news media as quickly as possible.

Q: What about the accreditations that the birth center has? Will those continue?

Answer: We are committed to having the same accreditations at the new birth center at RiverBend as we received at the Eugene location.

Q: What will my care be like in the interim period at the temporary location?

Answer: The quality and safety of your care are our highest priorities. We maintain the same commitment throughout the interim period to the quality care that you are familiar with as a birth center patient.

Q: Will 24/7 lactation support be available during the interim period?

Answer: Yes, lactation support services will remain in place as they have been.

Q: What services will be available in the new Nurse Midwifery Birth Center?

Answer: All the services our birth center patients have at the current location will carry over to the new birth center when it opens in the spring of 2010. In addition, birth center patients will have water births as an option at the new location.

Q: What are the features of the new birth center?

Answer: The features of the new facility are:

• 2 dedicated birth suites with tubs for water births
• 2 dedicated prenatal/postpartum exam rooms
• A healing garden and walking path for laboring mothers
• 2 areas for education and wellness programs
• An additional 700 square feet of space all on one level.

Q: How many babies have been born at the birth center, or attended by birth center nurse midwives since it began?

Answer: Approximately 5,600 babies have been born through the PeaceHealth Medical Group Nurse Midwifery Birth Center Program.

Q: How many births are done at the birth center on average?

Answer: An average of 100 babies are born at the birth center each year. Of birth center patients, 1/3 deliver at the birth center, while the remaining 2/3 of patients have midwife-attended births at Sacred Heart Medical Center.

Q: How can I contact PeaceHealth Medical Group’s Nurse Midwifery Birth Center?

Answer: To contact the Birth Center during this interim period, please call (541) 484-5796. To provide additional feedback to PeaceHealth Medical Group, please email: birthcenter@peacehealth.org