Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center
Do you offer private rooms? If so, what is the cost?
Good Samaritan Hospital has seven private rooms that are available to our patients at no extra charge. There are six additional private rooms on our newly refurbished maternity wing that cost $225 per night. These rooms include television and phone service, complimentary meals for the patient and their significant other, as well as other amenities, such as a small fridge and a hair dryer.
Do you offer prenatal, sibling or other classes?
Good Samaritan offers a robust perinatal education program for parents and parents-to-be. It starts with an Early Pregnancy class to prepare the expectant couple for what lies in the months ahead. We offer a comprehensive Childbirth Preparation course (Lamaze) to educate and prepare first-time parents. A shorter “refresher” course is available to remind parents of the breathing, relaxation and labor support techniques they learned from their first birth. There are also individual classes, which cover preparing couples for baby care and an introduction to breast-feeding. There’s a big brother/Big sister class to help prepare children for the new addition, as well as a grandparents class with information on advances in child care and how to baby-proof your home. Additionally, there are classes to offer assistance once your baby arrives. This includes a support group for women who are experiencing depression or anxiety during pregnancy or after birth. We also offer a Breast-feeding Café, New Mother’s Support Group, infant massage classes and breast pump rentals.
What special things do you do for the mother and baby?
After welcoming their baby into the world, new parents at Good Samaritan can announce their bundle of joy to the entire hospital by pushing a button in the delivery room that plays a lullaby throughout the building. We recognize the first boy and girl born each year at Good Samaritan with two gift baskets from local businesses filled with goodies for the parents and their newborn. On Mother’s Day, we recognize all of our new moms with flowers and a special commemorative Mother’s Day poem. During Easter, Halloween and Christmas, our volunteers make soft, cuddly eggs, pumpkins and stockings to swaddle our holiday newborns.
Do you have an on-site neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)?
Yes, we have a Level III NICU as designated by the New York State Department of Health. It is the largest neonatal center on the South Shore of Long Island, treating approximately 500 infants each year. The 16-bed facility provides a broad spectrum of specialized multidisciplinary intensive care services for infants as young as 23 weeks and as small as 1 pound at birth. A neonatologist is in the hospital 24 hours a day, seven days a week to attend to all high-risk deliveries, provide medical care, and support infants and their families.
Do you have a labor and delivery room?
Yes, there are seven labor and delivery rooms, in addition to two operating rooms dedicated to the unit. There are also seven antepartum beds and three beds for triage.
Are doulas or midwives allowed?
Doulas are welcome at Good Samaritan and allowed to serve as labor support. Midwives are not permitted.
What kind of security measures do you have in place to make sure the baby is safe?
Good Samaritan maintains an infant alarm system to keep our tiniest patients and their families safe.
Is there a breast-feeding coach and lactation consultant available on-site? Does the hospital support breast- and/or bottle feeding?
At Good Samaritan, 100 percent of maternity nurses are certified breast-feeding counselors. Additionally, we have several full and part-time international board-certified lactation consultants who are available to answer any questions and assist with techniques as you develop a bond with your newborn. Good Samaritan was one of two Long Island facilities recognized by the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners (IBLCE) and the International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA) for excellence in lactation care. While we offer a wide range of services and resources geared toward breast-feeding, we also understand that every family has different needs. As a result, we also offer services and resources to assist new parents with bottle-feeding and supplementation.
Is videotaping/photographing the birth allowed? A photographer for newborns available?
While we try to accommodate families who want to capture those priceless moments in the delivery room, patient safety is our primary focus. Photographs are allowed at the discretion of the attending physician; however, videotaping is prohibited. Following the delivery, once the family is safe and healthy, our staff is always willing to assist (and participate!) in family pictures. There is also a newborn photography company available at the hospital.
What do the rooms look like?
Do you offer anything special for moms during labor (i.e. hydrobath, labor ball, etc.)?
At Good Samaritan, we offer a peanut ball to expectant mothers who would like assistance during labor. This small therapy ball helps to shorten the first and second stages of labor while also decreasing C-section rates.
Do you offer a hospital tour?
Yes, free tours are offered by members of our perinatal education team.
Does the hospital do cord blood banking?
Cord blood banking is available to patients at Good Samaritan. This can be coordinated through their OBGYN using an outside vendor.
Do you offer any parting swag bags with samples?
While we don’t offer any specific “swag bags” to patients when they are discharged, we do provide several complimentary items, including sample products, to families during their stay with us.
Are siblings allowed to visit? Can the spouse sleep in the room?
We recommend visits for siblings who are 2 years and older, but welcome children of all ages. Partners are permitted to sleep at the hospital if their significant other is in a single patient room.
What are the visiting hours?
Visiting hours are from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. However, we understand that babies arrive at all hours of the day and night, so we’ll work to provide flexible visiting hours for families who wish to see their loved ones.
What’s the rate of C-sections at the hospital?
The primary C-section rate for first-time patients at Good Samaritan is 24 percent. The overall rate, including repeat C-sections, is 47 percent.
What’s the rate of breast-feeding mothers?
At Good Samaritan, 86 percent of mothers breast-feed or incorporate breast-feeding into their daily feeding routines, while 14 percent exclusively use formula.
What is the episiotomy rate?
Good Samaritan does not track the rate of episiotomies. We encourage patients with questions regarding episiotomies to consult with their OBGYNs.
Will my baby be able to sleep in the same room as me? Is there a nursery?
A nursery is available to our patients, but at Good Samaritan we strongly encourage and promote mother/baby couplet care, which allows for new parents to bond with their infants as they sleep in the same room.
Average length of a postpartum stay?
The average length of a postpartum stay at Good Samaritan is two days for a vaginal delivery and four days for a C-section.
Does the hospital offer anything new/cutting edge?
Good Samaritan is the only hospital on Long Island with NICVIEW cameras, which are 10 different cameras providing password-protected livestreaming video to connect babies in the NICU with parents, grandparents and other relatives looking to peek in on their little loved one’s progress. This innovative technology will enhance the parent-infant bonding experience and family-centered care, even when the parents cannot be at the baby’s bedside. While the arrival of a new family member is an exciting and emotional event, the staff at Good Samaritan also recognizes that the loss of a baby, whether in-utero or soon after birth, is the most heart-wrenching experience a parent can encounter. The perinatal bereavement program has been recognized for best practices at facilities across the country. In addition, many staff members are certified perinatal bereavement facilitators. In an effort to offer families an opportunity to love, celebrate and grieve for their baby in a supportive environment, Good Samaritan started “Emily’s Gift,” a program to ensure that services are consistently provided to bereaved families through a collaborative and holistic approach. A recent addition to the bereavement program is “Gabriel’s Courage,” which provides in-utero hospice or palliative care for the imperiled newborn, encompassing all perinatal bereavement services. This allows women who are given a critical fetal diagnosis the opportunity to be supported by a team of pediatric specialists, care management professionals and pastoral care staff to find the best way to support the baby and family.