Having Children On Island

I know several people who have had babies delivered on STX in the past year. In one case a woman CAME BACK to STX to have the baby after being away for most of the past year. Her previous two children had been born here and she felt she would like the third born here as well. She was not originally from STX.

In another case, the baby had meconium staining in his lungs, but the hospital did a fine job of caring for him and he's suffered no long-term problems from the experience.

There is another woman I know of who is due in February who has recently left island for the mainland. She knows she will have to have a Caesarean and would probably have been OK here, but felt that since she was going to be moving back to the mainland with her husband soon anyway, she might as well go now and plan to have the baby there.

The hospitals and medical services in the islands don't always get a lot of respect, despite being fully accredited. It's true that some services you take for granted on the mainland may not be available here and some types of diagnostic and treatment equipment might not be available, either. Try to keep in mind though that the doctors and nurses have gotten their degrees and certifications the same way (and in many cases at the same Medical Schools or universities) as the medical professionals in mainland hospitals. If you have a very complicated medical condition, you may need a specialist that is not in practice on the island. For general medical needs, you can usually get adequate care in the islands.

I have a friend that gave birth here on STX.

She got an epidural, morphine (small amounts...don't freak), a GREAT doctor, everything.

It was great...I was there for the delivery.

However, when her then-boyfriend decided that he wasn't ready for this "settled" life and tried to send her home, (mind you, the couple had already split up at this point, and he was NO LONGER IN THE PICTURE), the courthouse would NOT let her get the Birth Certificate unless he would sign it.

She had to cancel her flight back home to her loving family because she couldn't take the baby off island without him there to "approve" it. Even though he wanted no custody.....

He was off-island for a couple of weeks (with his new girlfriend), and finally came back and OK'd the certificate so she could go. Otherwise she would have had to leave the baby with him.

Ouch.

Maybe typical, maybe not....I've not had the experience myself.

The hospital was awesome, though....soooooo caring!

I gave birth in the Roy Lester Schneider Hospital on St Thomas in May of this year.

In brief,
The hospital staff was very nice, courteous and supportive. I did have a few problems with needle administration, but overall I was ecstatic. Of course, after succesfully giving birth to a healthy child I would venture to guess that anyone would be ecstatic even if they had given birth in the Marquis De Sade's parlor.

I had a private doctor, Dr. Catherine Kean, who is familiar with the staff and ensured that our birth plan was complied with. She is also a fabulous OB/Gyn.

No, an epidural was not an option and I didn't want one anyway so that made it an easy choice. My understanding is that there is no dedicated anaesthesiologist and therefore they simply don't offer the service. I did hear rumour that one was coming on staff soon.
I had Demerol, which just took the edge off enough for me to relax but not enough for the pain of contractions to go away. I was happy with that.

As far as alternative birthing options, Linda Caiger is an excellent midwife on-island. The hospital has also started staffing volunteer Doulas who can be available to provide support, etc. during birth.

Birth Cert.--Yes, getting a birth certificate is a chore. I am married but kept my last name and getting the original BC (and even copies) without my husband being present was difficult. Just count on your significant other being there when you apply for the certificate. Also, if you are planning on a home birth the process is even more excruciating.

Overall I think there is no reason to leave island to give birth unless you know or anticipate difficulties or you would like more birthing options available to you (e.g. water birth).

GOOD LUCK.

Onika

Hi there...Just had a baby girl here in St. Thomas at the hospital 13 days ago. My thoughts are a little bit different from Onika's. If I could do it all over again I would have her in the states. Although I loved my Dr. (Dr. Catherine Kean) and Nurse Wade from the labor unit I had a rough time and would have welcomed the option of an epidural and there were many nurses that I had nicknames for, such as, Bulldog, etc. for their lack of bedside manners and professionalism. We survived! From what I understand the option of an epidural is coming soon to a hospital near you! They have hired a few more anastesialogist (pardon my spelling) and will be offering the option.
As far as birth certificate remember that nothing is "EASY" here to get done, but when I went the island was without power for 5 hours and I had to search through where I was going in the dark. From vital statistics to the cashier was pitch black and hot from no air circulation. What a nightmare that was with a newborn, but as usual, I survived and can put in my memory book of an "island" day. Tomorrow I am supposed to pick it up and then go to get the social security card so I will keep you posted on what happens there.

Congratulations on your new baby girl!

Labor is never fun, but the rewards are worth it. I'm glad you both made it through OK. What did you name her?

Many, many congratulations 🙂 We have thought about you alot over the last few weeks and were wondering how everything was going. Hope to see a picture soon 🙂
Pia and Les

Congratulations! Happy to hear all turned out well for you and baby. But I' a little curious, what if some one needs a "c" section and wasn't planning on it? Sounds scarry to me. I wouldn't want to put my wife and child in a life threatening situation.

Bassman

Kelly,
Congrats again on the birth of your daughter.
Sorry to hear things didn't go as you had hoped, but thankfully she is healthy!

BTW, the Social Security office is a breeze.

Onika

Hello Kellymac,

Congrats on your new baby!! 🙂

All the best,

--Islander

They can do epidurals for planned c's or emergency c's. Just not for what they call "regular" healthy vaginal births, blah, blah, blah. Baby girl and I did survive, but would go to states next time for sure...I have heard some very good stories, too about births here so don't mean to send a negative vibe out there..We are alive and well. Madison Taylor McCrea is her name.

Kellymac,

I am happy for you! Derek showed us pictures. Beautiful! He is such a proud daddy. He did look a little tired... 🙂 Nap often and if you need anything, let me know. I will p.m. you.

Teresa