Expert pregnancy care from your first prenatal visit through labor and delivery

Pregnancy can be a precious and exciting time. It can also feel a little overwhelming as you enter different pregnancy stages and get ready for childbirth. But from the moment you find out you’re pregnant to the moment baby is in your arms, we’re here to support you and your little one’s health and well-being with expert pregnancy care.

Over the coming weeks and months, you’ll start to make decisions about how you want to welcome your baby into the world. You’ll need to choose a doctor or midwife, make a birth plan, decide where to deliver and much more – but pregnancy help is here.

At HealthPartners and Park Nicollet, we welcome you and your family with modern spaces, room for extended family and a team that honors personal and cultural preferences. With award-winning birth centers and OB-GYNS, midwives, doulas, and family medicine doctors working together, we want to make sure your pregnancy and birthing experience is everything you hoped for.

Choosing the right person for prenatal care is an important first step as they will help guide you through pregnancy. Everyone has a different idea of what the coming months will hold. We can help you find someone who’s the right fit to honor your choices, support you and guide you along the way.

OB-GYNs are doctors who specialize in treating all conditions that affect women’s reproductive systems. Our OB-GYNs and nurse practitioners work together to provide exceptional medical care for all types of pregnancies, including high-risk pregnancies. You’ll get to know the nurse practitioners who work with our OB-GYNs during some of your prenatal appointments. Choosing an OB-GYN for pregnancy care can also help you develop a long-term relationship with a doctor who can care for you beyond pregnancy.

Our certified nurse midwives guide mothers who have low-risk pregnancies through the birth process. When you choose a midwife for your pregnancy, they can support you, your partner and family through all different types of birth plans, including water births, hypnobirthing and natural birth. They’re here to offer guidance and emotional support as you prepare for birth.

Some of our family medicine doctors can also care for women during low-risk pregnancies and will coordinate with our team of OB-GYNs, if needed. This is a great option if you would like to have all your care provided by one person or would like one doctor to see your whole family.

We can help you get your pregnancy off to a healthy start with prenatal care. Prenatal care includes appointments throughout your pregnancy where your doctor will track baby’s growth and provide you with guidance on nutrition, sleep, exercise and any questions you have.

Our doctors and midwives provide expert prenatal care and flexible scheduling options to help you learn what to expect during pregnancy and delivery.

We also offer midwife-led group prenatal care for you and your loved one where you can connect with others due to deliver around the same time as you.

While your first visit is typically around six to twelve weeks, you’re welcome to schedule a pregnancy appointment at a clinic near you as soon as you know you’re expecting.

Your first prenatal visit is an important milestone in your pregnancy. In this appointment, we focus on you and preparing you for the coming months. It’s typical in this first appointment to receive both a routine physical exam and additional care specific to pregnancy, including a pelvic exam and advice on dietary changes recommended during pregnancy.

We’ll also be able to determine your due date, provide helpful information about choosing a birth center and prenatal classes, and spend time answering your questions.

You deserve to have the delivery you want. We’ll help you understand your care and delivery options and answer all your questions while providing outstanding care for you and your family.

A vaginal birth is the most common and usually has the shortest recovery time. We can help relieve some of the pain and discomfort experienced during labor through a variety of options, including everything from epidurals to aromatherapy during labor and delivery. We’ll discuss pain relief options and help you choose what works best for you, whether that’s an unmedicated, natural birth or an epidural – or something in between.

Some women choose to deliver in a warm tub of water supported by a midwife. This is called a water birth. Warm water can help soothe discomfort and calm both you and your newborn baby. Some women who aren’t having water births still choose to labor in a tub to help reduce pain and pressure. With modern water birthing suites at our birth centers, we’re here to help make you and baby feel as comfortable as possible while we guide you through labor and delivery.

A cesarean delivery, often called a C-section, is when a baby is delivered through a surgical procedure. C-sections are usually recommended if there is a concern about your health or your baby’s health during labor. They are also recommended if baby isn’t positioned properly for a vaginal birth. Our birth teams work with you to provide a family-centered C-section, which means you and your partner will be involved in the process, with skin-to-skin bonding time and breastfeeding, if you would like.

Many women who’ve given birth via C-section want the option to have a vaginal delivery with their next pregnancy – up to 80% of women have successful VBAC deliveries. We’ve helped thousands of women successfully deliver with VBAC.

We support and care for you during even the most complex pregnancies and deliveries. Our team of board-certified maternal fetal medicine specialists provide expert, specialized care for mom and baby during high-risk pregnancies. If the expertise of a maternal fetal medicine doctor is needed, we’ll help connect you with one so you and your child get the comprehensive care you need at every step of your pregnancy.

Choosing a birth center is one of the most important parts of your pregnancy. We’re always working to make labor and delivery more comfortable for moms and babies with our modern facilities, numerous amenities and a variety of birthing options to choose from. We welcome partners, family and doulas in all our birth centers, so you have the support you need. Volunteer doulas are also available at some locations if you decide you’d like a doula by your side after arriving.

We are proud to provide many locations for you to choose from across the Twin Cities and western Wisconsin:

Located in St. Louis Park, our Methodist Family Birth Center provides a comfortable, calm environment for you and your family while providing the exceptional care you deserve. The center was designed using the latest scientific research about what works best for deliveries and input from moms. With four water birthing suites, larger postpartum rooms and recommended classes for new moms including the Lactation Café, we have everything you might need as you welcome your new baby.

At Regions Hospital Family Birth Center in St. Paul, the happiness, health and comfort of you and your family are our top priorities. We focus on honoring your choices and making you and your family comfortable. We offer private birthing suites complete with a private bathroom and soaking tub so you can enjoy the life-changing experience of birth with your loved one by your side. We’re equipped to handle everything from water births to C-sections with skill and compassion.

Our doctors also deliver at many other hospitals in Minnesota and western Wisconsin:

• Amery Hospital Birth Center (Amery, WI)
• Hudson Hospital Birth Center (Hudson, WI)
• Hutchinson Health BirthCare Center (Hutchinson, MN)
• Lakeview Hospital Birth and Women’s Center (Stillwater, MN)
• Westfields Hospital Birth Center (New Richmond, WI)
  

Partner hospitals and birth centers:

• Family Birth Center – Maple Grove Hospital (Maple Grove, MN)
• The Mother Baby Center at Abbott Northwestern and Children’s Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN)
• The Mother Baby Center at Mercy with Children’s Minnesota (Coon Rapids, MN)
• St. Francis Family Birth Place (Shakopee, MN)
• The Birthplace at M Health Fairview Ridges Hospital (Burnsville, MN)

Baby will need their first pediatric visit within a week of being born. As part of the largest pediatrics practice in the Twin Cities, we care for kids of any age at many clinics throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Finding a doctor for your baby who you can trust is important for your child’s development and well-being. The right pediatrician will be there to listen to your concerns, answer questions and offer guidance as your child grows. While in the hospital, your baby will be cared for by one of our pediatricians.

Each pregnancy and delivery is unique. We provide a variety of different services to help you find support and guidance as you prepare for motherhood. Some of the services we provide include:

Whether you’re in the heart of the Twin Cities or don’t have a pregnancy care center near you, help is just a phone call away. Our OB-GYN nurses are here to guide you throughout your pregnancy and after you bring baby home, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. You can call us with questions about pregnancy symptoms, activities and foods to avoid, postpartum essentials, breastfeeding concerns and when to seek care for yourself or your little one.

Local: 612-333-2229
Toll free: 800-845-9297
TTY/TDD: 711

If breastfeeding is right for you, we offer the education and support you need to make breastfeeding a positive and rewarding experience for you and your baby.

• Lactation consultation – Our board-certified lactation consultants and registered nurses work with you to provide personalized support for you and your baby. Make an appointment with a lactation consultant by calling 952-993-5124.
• Breastfeeding Center – We rent and sell electric breast pumps, and provide complimentary, professional instruction. We also offer manual breast pumps, replacement parts and supplies, including nursing bras. Call 952-993-3121 for more information about breastfeeding products.
• Lactation Café – We provide free breastfeeding support groups where you can connect with other new moms and share tips on how to care for your babies. Here, you’ll be able to spend time feeding baby while enjoying a snack yourself. Join a class at one of our many locations at HealthPartners Como Clinic, Methodist Hospital, Lakeview Hospital or Amery Hospital & Clinic.
• Breast Milk Depot – Methodist Hospital offers a Breast Milk Depot that connects women with an abundant supply of breast milk for babies in need. If you’re interested in becoming a donor or purchasing donor milk, contact the Breastfeeding Center at 952-993-5124.

Our “Expecting Together: Your Pregnancy from Start to Finish” is a virtual class series that brings together Black women at each stage of their prenatal or postpartum journey. Together, you’ll learn about the medical care that happens throughout the timeline of your pregnancy. Each class is guided by one of our OB-GYNs.

The Healthy Beginnings program provides support to patients during pregnancy who face challenges with substance abuse, mental health, homelessness, poverty, domestic violence and other complex issues. The program offers education, referrals and resources, as well as provides the medical team with case consultation and support.

Pregnancy and birth can be emotional, and some women experience changes to their emotional and mental health. We care about your emotional and mental health as much as your physical health. After you give birth, we make sure you have a screening for postpartum depression so we can connect you to support groups and our mental health experts if needed.

Download our free myHealthyPregnancy app powered by YoMingo for important anytime, anywhere parent education and fun extras for every stage of pregnancy, newborn care and more.