Holy Cross or Sibley for Birth?

I delivered at Sibley and the staff is WONDERFUL!! I couldn't ask for better nurses or lactation support. They have private rooms available but it is an extra charge unless all the double rooms are full.
You should go where you are most comfortable, but you should check both out before you make a decision.

B.,
As a doula and childbirth educator, I'd vote for Sibley over Holy Cross anytime.
The nurses are better at Sibley. I will no longer attend births at Holy Cross because of the whole attitude in that hospital. It also depends on what type of birth you desire. If you are planning a medicated birth from the start, then Holy Cross would be fine. If you desire a natural unmedicated birth, or even want to avoid surgery- C-section, then go to Sibley. Holy Cross has extremely high C-section rates. My other suggestion is to look into birthing with midwives. If you feel most comfortable in a hospital, there are midwives that deliver at Shady Grove- Midwifery Care associates. Shady Grove has private post partum rooms as well. Their labor rooms have tubs that you can use during labor as well.
If you want a natural birth, I also suggest looking into an out of hospital birth class. If you have any more questions or want more info., please feel free to contact me.
Good luck,
L.

Hello B.,
My son was born at Sibley Memorial (Nov 07). He was a month and a half premature and it was an emergency C-section. I had a good experience with the hospital over all. The staff was great and the NICU attendees were top notch. The downside which you mentioned was sharing the room during your recovery. But, I paid the extra amount and got a private room. Best of luck to you, Georgia-

Definitely Holy Cross... Their Labor and Delivery is only about 2 years old and it is beautiful, the staff is so wonderful and the hospital is very very nice. They treat you like you're a queen I have had children @ Washington Hospital Center and the last one @ Holy Cross, They don't compare.

A little about me:I am a working 36 yr old mother of three 2boys 19 & 7, and the last a little girl 14 mo.

I gave birth to my daughter at Sibley in August of 2007. My overall experience there was good. The staff was polite and responded quickly to my needs. My only complaint would be the rooms. Since it is a small hospital, the majority of the rooms are shared. I did end up getting a private room but it was really small. And while you can request to have a private room it is not guaranteed that you will get one. I hope this information is helpful. Best of luck!

Hi B.-

I highly recommend Holy Cross, it's been almost 21 years since they saved my son's life after his premature birth. He was 9 weeks early, weighed 4lbs 6oz could not nurse since his sucking reflex had not developed, they also expected him to have breathing issues. However they gave me small doses of steroids during the day and a half, while they were trying to stop my labor, which helped speed the development of his lungs. Because he did not know how to nurse he nearly died but the neo-natal doctors were excellent and my baby boy is now almost 21yrs. old and has never had any breathing or developmental challenges.

I have also heard others speak highly of their maternity facilties and the care they received. I also know that have made upgrades to the facilty over the years.

Hope this helps

God Bless you and your family because He is who truly makes the difference no matter where you deliver.

Hello,

B.! I had 3 of 6 children there(Holy Cross) at very young age, and the experience for me was so wonderful! That was over 18-16 years ago, I loved the staff and the food was good too....I'm sure they have gotten better.

I gave birth to DD at Holt Cross and loved it - a very good friend of mine is a delivery nurse there now and she loves it too - I don't know anything about sibley - my suggestion would be to take a tour of each one and see how you feel about them then

hmm... Well the first Red Flag is that you are not crazy about your OB -- I personally think it is really important to love your doctors (esp. OBGYNs). I switched from my very very conveniently located doctor to Foxhall OBGYN even though they are across town and I couldn't be happier. It is not too late to switch practices if you are not crazy about your doc.

I delivered at Sibley and I was VERY happy with my experiences there. Sibley is kind of far away from my home on capitol hill, but my baby wasn't born for 20+ hours after my water broke so it wasn't a big deal getting to the hospital. I loved all the nurses. The birthing rooms are beautiful. The recovery rooms are small, but I believe that that is the case in most hospitals. In any event, it was big enough for me and my son and there was a pull out single bed for my husband. I had a private room. I requested a private room when I pre-registered.

My son had some complications at birth and was admitted to the specialty care unit for the first 8 days of his life and so we really got to know all the neo-natal doctors and NICU nurses and they were all amazing. They also have a family room that has two pull out beds and couches, chairs and a TV which came in very handy during my son's NICU stay.

I've never been to Holy Cross so I can't compare. I have been to GW's maternity ward and Sibley is far nicer.

B., I delivered at neither but I have heard great stories about Holy cross hospital. What I would do is go online for each hospital and view the ob departments. Most hospitals will usually have a page for you to view.

I am with the other two ladies. I am a patient of Capitol Womens Care and delivered both my boys at Holy Cross. The staff is excellent and I believe they are known for their neonatal unit. If you choose Capitol Womens Care, Drs. Steven Maggid, and Corliss Newhouse are great. Dr. Maggid delivered my first and Dr. Newhouse delivered my second. I have been a patient there for over eleven years, since I was seventeen!

Hi, and congrats! If it's the Holy Cross in Silver Spring, MD, then do NOT choose it. I gave birth in Holy Cross to my 10 month-old daughter and it was the most miserable experience I've ever had. I say this because it felt as if (1) I was forgotten, (2) I waited hours before I actually got some attention and moved to a real room, (3) I was never paid much quality attention throughout my entire stay. So, please choose and research this hospital wisely. I hope you have a wonderful experience wherever you go (even if it's not in MD)!

I gave birth at Holy Cross and I highly recommend them. They go over everything with you from the birth to breastfeeding when your in the hospital. The staff is very good and very helpful. If you want an OB associated with the hospital, is Capitol Women's Care off of Georgia Ave.in Silver Spring They are really good doctors and make you feel at ease with your questions and concerns.

I hope this helps.

T.

I had my first baby at Holy Cross and had a good experience, esp during my c-section. The perioperative staff were awesome! I was a little disappointed with the care after the baby came as they leave you alone quite a bit and as a new mom, I would've liked a bit more guidance. However, I hear that is how it is in most hospitals. The baby care class and lactation consultants are very helpful though. I would recommend Holy Cross overall, esp with the shorter commute for you.

Hi B.! Congrats on the pregnancy! I delivered at Holy Cross, even tho I live in Columbia, because I couldn't bear to leave my ob practice, AND i've always heard such great things about the hospital. I really did enjoy my experience with Holy Cross. The labor and delivery as well as recovery rooms are all private, and very nicely appointed. They do not have a nursery, so babies are always kept in your room with you unless they are in the NICU. my delivery nurse was AMAZING, she had a great level of enthusiasm and was really helpful. I go to Capital Women's Care (Band/Badway/Sine etc) off Georgia Ave, and have done so since I was 16. I don't think I'll ever go anywhere else. Holy Cross has 24 hour visitation, and allow you to order food from local restaurants if you don't like the hospital food.
A couple words of caution however: they are known as a "baby factory" and deliver a baby on average every 45 min. because it's such a busy place, you may have to wait for a l&d room to open up (i waited almost an hour, which was excruciating). Also, because they deliver so many babies, the staff can be a little overbearing, a little "we do this all the time, trust us" which might be a concern if you are very independent and have certain preferences. (I did NOT have this experience, but friends of mine have). I constantly reiterated that i did not want drugs or medical intervention, and although they were pretty shocked, they went along with my wishes.
All in all i'd say i had a very good, very comfortable experience. I hope this helps!

Hi B.,

I delivered both kids at Holy Cross Hospital. Both times I had a really good experience. If you are looking for a good OB, I have been going to Dr. Esfand Nawab for over 7 years. He's the best and his office is in Bethesda on West Cedar Lane. He delivers at Holy Cross.

Hi -- I had a pretty good experience at Sibley (and am planning to deliver there again in October), but I did have to share a room for a few hours until a private room freed up. The nurses at Sibley are great. My daughter was born a month early and spent a few hours in the NICU at Sibley; they seemed equipped to handle it. But when she developed severe jaundice a few days later we were sent to Georgetown, which is a short drive from Sibley. In any event, if you decide to stick with Sibley and want a new OB, I recommend Brendan Burke. He is wonderful and always makes the "top doctor" lists in Checkbook and Washingtonian. Best wishes and congrats on your little boy!

I gave birth at Sibley and had a wonderful experience. Sibley is only 5 minutes from my home. With that said I would go with Holy Cross b/c it is a "baby" hospital with, I believe, a level 4 NICU. Although my son and I were treated well and we had a good experience, Sibley is known for its cancer treatment center, whereas HC is known for its labor and delivery. Also, my OBGYN will not deliver at Sibley in an emergency situation, they deliver in Georgetown for any premature or otherwise unstable births. Another note, our pediatrician stated that he felt Sibley was fine for delivery, but as far as taking your child for treatment if the situation arose, he reccomended using another hospital b/c he feels that Sibley is not properly equiped to handle children in emergency situations.

Holy Cross is a great hospital and with it being so close you might want to consider switching doctors. I have delivered both of our sons there and have found the facility and staff to be excellent. My OB(Dr. Andrew Block) is in Rockville(Contemporary OBGYN) and I love the practice as well. In case you want to check them out the number is ###-###-####.
Congratulations on your pregnancy...what an exciting time for you! H.

I gave birth to 2 children at Sibley...great experience. I used to be an RN and filled in L&D at Holy Cross a few times...good hospital too...but it was a long time ago. I think they have updaed L&D since then to accomodate one of the big HMOs back then.

Sibley...I had a doula both times..they treated her well and worked well with her in the birthing plan she and I put together, I didn't want an episiotomy so wanted the perineal massage, they had the walnut oil on hand. They are up on all the birthing techniques including underwater and have facilities for it...progressive. Almost all rooms are private...I think they only have a couple of semi's. I birthed in the room and recovered there as well. I only stayed in only 24 hours at my request...all was great. They are also very close to Georgtown Univ Hosp in case there is a problem with the baby and you need a more intense facility/transfer. BTW, they thought my son was going to be in distress when he was born due to decels...my room was full of NICU personell immediately to help if needed...they all quietly disappeared when all was well :)

I am 46 and preg again...live a little further from Sibley and want to be closer to my Doctor, so I changed practices to one close to home where I don't have to drive to DC for a sonogram...the only reason I changed my Dr....loved Sibley.

Hope this helps.

Hi B., I am the mother of 5 chldren, all delivered at Holy Cross Hospital. I absolutely loved the Hospital. The staff was very helpful and friendly and if you needed anything they were there. My last child was delivered there in 1998, and a lot has changed there, but all for the better. I would highly recommend Holy Cross Hospital. My sister delivered her kids there, and my sister-in-law also delivered my twin nieces there. We were all extremely pleased with the hospital.

Good Luck!!

My sister and I were both delivered at Holy Cross, granted that was quite awhile ago. I've heard nothing but good things about Holy Cross's maternity ward. It's also nice that it is so close to you, especially since this is your first child.

B., I had an absolutly wonderful experience with Holy Cross. My husband has been to Sibley for emergency related care and didn't care for the staff. At holy cross you will get your own room and the nursery was right out my door. Hope this helps.

S.