By Andrew Fefer, Reporter/Editor
An area hospital that says it is the first in the region to provide all-in-one birthing suites will be showing the rooms to the public on Monday.
HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital is hosting tours of its newly-renovated Women and Infants Center. The event is scheduled for April 30 at 9 a.m. The hospital will have a blessing, and then the Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce will perform a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 9:15 a.m. From there, people can tour the center until noon. The center is on the third floor of the hospital, which is located at 900 W. Clairemont Ave. in Eau Claire.
The purpose of the suites is to allow for labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum care in the same room. Among the amenities in the rooms are birthing slings, birthing tubs, adjustable birthing beds, aromatherapy, and bassinets. They also include lactation consultation rooms and larger bathrooms with sinks designed for bathing newborns.
“The opening of our newly-remodeled center invites families to create an experience all their own with multiple birthing options,” Women and Infants Center manager Bethany Calkins said in a statement.
The hospital also offers personal tours of the center for expectant mothers. To schedule a tour, you are asked to call the center at (715) 717-4156.