New maternity center unveiled Saturday

CENTERVILLE, Ohio (WDTN) - The most recent expansion at Miami Valley Hospital South is nearly complete, but the finishing touches will come two tiny feet at a time.

This month the Centerville campus will open its doors to its much anticipated maternity center. The center - equipped with a Level II newborn nursery and capabilities to handle nearly every birthing plan - provides parents with a new choice when deciding where to celebrate one of the most important moments of their lives.

The center will be unveiled Saturday, August 18 at a public open house and baby fair from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. The public will be able to tour the facility and enjoy exhibitors, live music and entertainment. A ribbon cutting ceremony will be held earlier at 1:30 p.m. The maternity center will be ready to receive its first patients August 27th.

The nearly 30,000-square-foot center includes five labor and delivery suites, two surgical suites for c-section deliveries and 16 private after-birthing suites.  The center’s services include maternal-fetal medicine and advanced ultrasound, lactation consultation, birth and family education classes, massage therapy and a birthing tub suite. Fifty employees were hired as part of the expansion.

Though the center was designed for low-risk pregnancies, it does however offer the expertise of a staff trained in Level III high-risk competencies. And unlike other Level II maternity centers, this one will have a board-certified obstetrician on-staff around the clock to monitor women until their own doctor is able to make it to their side.

The first baby to be born at MVHS’ maternity center will receive a year’s worth of cloth diapers for free. The first 500 babies born at the center will receive a specially designed onesie.