Saint Agnes is a recipient of the 2009/2010 Maternity Care Excellence Award and Ranked among the Top 5% in the nation for Maternity Care in The Sixth Annual HealthGrades Women’s Health in American Hospitals study released in June 2009. Further underscoring its quality work in women’s health, Saint Agnes Medical Center has been rated 5-Star for Maternity Care five years in a row (2005 & 2006/2007-2009/2010).

The new 2010 HealthGrades hospital ratings are posted online at HealthGrades’ public Web site, www.healthgrades.com.

Welcome to Saint Agnes Medical Center’s Women and Infant Services Department. We’ve been expecting you!

From the day you learn you’re pregnant, to the moment your baby is born, you will be creating memories to cherish forever. Our goal at Saint Agnes is to ensure those memories are extra special. It is something we’ve prided ourselves on since 1929, and our commitment to our maternity patients is clearly reflected in our strong preference among consumers. Perhaps the reason is because the sisters, physicians, and nurses at Saint Agnes have always believed special blessings deserve special deliveries.

To prepare you for your precious arrival and assist you in making a smooth transition into parenthood, Saint Agnes offers the following programs and services.

Before Giving Birth

Stork Tours
Let us prepare you for your big day through one of our regularly scheduled stork tours. This will give you an opportunity to become more familiar with the Medical Center, as well as celebrate your pregnancy with other expecting families. To schedule your stork tour call (559) 450-BABY.

Childbirth Education Classes 
Let Saint Agnes registered nurses help you prepare for motherhood. Our maternity classes cover the labor and delivery process, relaxation breathing for labor, breastfeeding, plus infant care and feeding. Classes are beneficial for both first time parents and mothers who want a refresher course. Classes are held on Saturdays class. Other topics covered include third trimester discomforts, when to call the doctor, the labor process (including coping techniques and pain medications), Cesarean Section, and basic infant care. Also included is a tour of Saint Agnes and information on registration and admission. An infant nutrition class is offered as an additional sixth session. For more information, call (559) 450-BABY.

Diabetes During Pregnancy Clinic
Pregnancy is particularly stressful for women with diabetes who require careful monitoring. Saint Agnes offers a clinic with one-on-one counseling from our nurse educator, dietitian and physician. Appointments can be made Monday through Friday for the initial visit and Wednesday afternoons thereafter. The clinic is held in the Diabetes Treatment & Resource Center in the Saint Agnes Administrative Center, 1111 E. Spruce Ave. The fee is based on the amount of time spent with staff. For more information call (559) 450-2002.

Complimentary 4-D Ultrasound
Expectant parents, anxious to get a glimpse of their developing baby, are paying $100 and more to have elective 4-D ultrasounds taken. If you're a Saint Agnes imaging patient, you can get a complimentary 4-D ultrasound.

Simply ask your physician to refer you to Saint Agnes for your diagnostic ultrasound (between 18 and 22 weeks), and you will be eligible to return for a complimentary 4-D ultrasound (between 28 and 30 weeks). You'll also receive a framed photo, along with a CD of your little one in motion. For more information about this special offer, call (559) 450-3210.

Free ParentCare E-mail Service
Expectant parents are faced with a bewildering range of pregnancy and parenting information. It's difficult to know how to sort it all out. Now, maternity patients have a resource to guide them through their pregnancy and the first year of their baby's life – Saint Agnes' weekly ParentCare e-mail. This free service offers expectant and new parents customized information, news, and resources from our parent education staff.

Register Online
Don't be caught off-guard by an early arrival. If you plan to deliver your baby at Saint Agnes, we've got great news for you! You can do all your preregistration paperwork online - no need to pick up forms in advance, come in early, or answer a lot of questions over the phone. In a matter of minutes, you can fill out a simple form and e-mail it to us. For your protection, all information is confidential and data is encrypted for transmission. To register online, visit our Web site's Online Preregistration page.

After Hours Check In
In keeping with our commitment to providing you and your baby with the highest level of care and safety, we have changed the way we register our maternity patients, after hours (9 p.m.- 6 a.m.). If you arrive at Saint Agnes, between the hours of 9 p.m. and 6 a.m., for an OB check or to be admitted for delivery, please report to the Emergency Department where you will be registered and personally escorted – by a nurse – to Labor & Delivery (6th floor of Main Wing). Please note that if you arrive during regular hours, you should report to Patient Registration on the first floor of the Outpatient Center.

Private Birthing Rooms
Your baby will be delivered into a world that feels a little more like home, in one of our 12 beautifully decorated labor/delivery/recovery suites. Each suite is specially designed to add a touch of warmth and comfort to your birthing experience. To help familiarize yourself with your surroundings in advance of your delivery, you can visit an LDR suite during a stork tour by calling (559) 450-BABY. 

Infant Security
Saint Agnes has several procedures in place to ensure the safety of your baby. Your nurse can explain these to you.

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
Knowing that Children’s Hospital Central California has a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit on the maternity floor at Saint Agnes reassures new parents that, if complications arise, their baby will receive the best care possible. The unit is fully staffed with trained specialists who are able to care for premature and other special-needs babies, 24 hours a day.

Visiting Hours
Visiting hours on the maternity floor are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Dads can visit any time. Siblings of the new baby are the only children allowed on the floor. All other children must be over the age of twelve.

Baby Track Program
Saint Agnes Service Guild volunteers visit each new mother in the hospital and give her information about the shots her infant will need in the coming months. To reinforce the immunization message, follow-up phone calls are made to new moms at 3, 5, and 7 months to remind them to visit their doctor and get their babies immunized on time.

Breastfeeding Services
If you decide to breastfeed, our specially trained nurses and lactation specialists will help you get started immediately. After you and your baby have left the hospital, our nurses are available to provide further breastfeeding support through the Saint Agnes Postpartum Follow-up and Lactation Center.