Services We Offer

We believe you should be an active participant in your healthcare and we will make every effort to provide you with information and education regarding all of your options, so that you and your family can make the best choices about your care.

Our services include:

• Complete prenatal care including CenteringPregnancy™
• Personalized instruction in self care, nutrition, and emotional health
• Comprehensive childbirth preparation classes, breastfeeding and baby care classes
• Postpartum care for you and your baby including a postpartum in-home visit by CNM or RN
• Ongoing breastfeeding and parenting support.

Orientation and Initial Prenatal Visit

During your initial new family visit, you will:

• Meet with one of our Certified Nurse-Midwives (CNMs) and go over all the requirements necessary to give birth at Birth Center of Denver.
• Review the structure of our prenatal visits including our CenteringPregnancy™ model of care, birth center education requirements, and additional services and support.
• Complete and sign all health, financial, and consent forms.
• This will also be a great time to ask our nurses and midwives any questions to help us get to know you and your expectations for this very special experience.

CenteringPregnancy™

Centering group prenatal care follows the same recommended schedule of routine prenatal visits, but each visit is approximately two hours long – giving women 10x more time with the midwife than a traditional prenatal appointment. Moms engage in their care by taking their own weight and blood pressure, then will have one-on-to-one time with the midwife for a belly check. Once health assessments are complete, the midwife and other staff "circle-up" with moms and support people. They lead facilitative discussions and interactive activities designed to address important and timely health topics while leaving room to discuss what is important to the group. Centering materials help moms and providers ensure that everything from nutrition, common discomforts, stress management, labor and delivery, breastfeeding, and infant care are covered in group. And one of the best parts of CenteringPregnancy™? You are enrolled with a group with the same delivery month as you, allowing you to go through your pregnancy and postpartum journeys together. It’s about education, connecting with other families and building a community.

Education

Throughout your prenatal care we will be talking about your plans, hopes and concerns about childbirth and parenthood. We recognize the birth of your baby as your own special experience and we will be honored to provide the kind of care you desire. In addition, we provide the highest caliber of education classes to prepare you for labor, birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum and newborn care.

We will work with you to choose a customized education plan designed to meet you and your family’s needs. Our primary focus at Birth Center of Denver is to make sure you and your family feel safe, well informed, and excited for the experiences ahead. By creating a community of well-supported mothers through education and support, we know that we can help you and your family thrive for years to come.

See Birth Center of Denver classes and events »

Birth of Your Baby

As the time of your birth draws near, we may have more frequent contact with you and may include additional private prenatal visits as your baby’s debut becomes more imminent. We stay on call 24-hours a day and will discuss the process of coming to Birth Center of Denver in active labor. A midwife and a nurse will meet you at the center and get you settled in one of our five spacious and comfortable birth suites.

During labor we will monitor your vital signs, check on your baby's well-being, and support you in the ways you desire. The following are just some of the supportive methods we offer:

• Hydrotherapy and water birth
• Birth balls and birth slings
• TENS units and massage tools
• Optimal positioning and freedom of movement
• Encouragement to eat and drink during labor
• Consistent support in a calming environment
• Nitrous Oxide

You are encouraged to have whatever support team you would like including your partner, doula, family, and even siblings. If you do have siblings that want to be present for the labor and/or birth, we do require that they have their own primary support adult, separate from your primary support person. Children tend to get bored, scared, tired, and hungry throughout labor so someone dedicated to only their needs is necessary.

It’s also important to have another adult responsible for your children if you need to transfer to the hospital for a higher level of care due to medical complications that may arise. If something unexpected comes up and a higher level of medical care is ever necessary, Colorado’s top baby hospital is right in our backyard.

After the Birth

After the birth we will continue to carefully monitor you and your baby as you adjust in the immediate postpartum period. We will give your baby a thorough newborn exam by your side and share our findings with you. We will support you and your baby for breastfeeding success while honoring your family's need for bonding and privacy. In many cases, one of our midwives or nurses will visit and provide assessment and support in the comfort of your home 1-2 days after the birth. During this time we will check in on your new family, see how you are feeling, how your baby is doing, and if you have any special needs or questions during this unique adjustment. We will talk about continued care of the infant and mom, discuss necessary follow-up appointments with care providers such as your baby’s pediatrician, and offer additional resources as needed. We also will have you return to see a midwife for a six-week postpartum visit and we have a variety of events and support groups to help you stay confident.

Payment Options

We accept the majority of insurance plans including Kaiser Permanente, Medicaid, and most private insurance coverage. We do not accept TriCare. Giving birth at Birth Center of Denver is typically less costly than a vaginal birth in a hospital setting, which may be helpful for large deductible plans and self-pay families. We will discuss financial questions or concerns before or during your initial prenatal visit. Our education classes and any optional events and services are out of pocket expenses and are non-billable to insurance. We do have payment options, but require payment in full before the first class. For additional information regarding our relationship with insurance or financial topics, please talk to any Birth Center staff.