Worcester and Droitwich Branch
W o r c e s t e r s h i r e ’s
New
The Meadows Birth Centre
Arrival:
It has been a long time coming but the wait is
finally over: Meadows Birth Centre is
‗delivered‘ (okay, I will try to leave the birthing
puns at that!) on the 30th March. Having unsuccessfully bid two years previously, senior
staff were delighted when the 2014 request to
the Department of Health for £497,000 was
approved. Using this and public donations, the
unit has transformed an existing ward into four
birthing rooms, plus a family room and midwives‘ station. I went to take a look and report back for those of
you who are looking for a calmer, more natural and interventionfree approach to your baby‘s birth—with the added reassurance
of knowing you are in the hospital should transfer to theatre be
required.
Location, location, location
The centre is located on the ground floor of the hospital and
seems tucked away from other wards, which is ideal and adds to
its self-contained, almost spa-like feel. This continues when you
see the en-suite rooms, particularly the Poppy suite with its double bed, rolled towels, pool and a wonderful amount of space for
mums to freely walk and change position during their labour.
What’s in a name?
The four rooms were each named through the
same competition that decided the final choice for
the centre itself and continue the floral theme.
Daisy is a smaller, cosy room – the only one without a fixed pool but with adequate room for an
inflatable one if needed; Cornflower is a soothing
blue haven; Violet also has its own fixed pool and
Poppy is the star of the show with the pull-down
bed and hotel feel.
Worcester and Droitwich Branch Spring 2015
17