Bayhealth Center for Women and Infants, Sussex Campus

Generally speaking, it is time to come to the hospital when your contractions are 5 minutes apart for one hour and you cannot comfortably talk through them. If your water breaks, or you have bright red bleeding, you should call your caregiver right away to see if he or she wants you to come in.

No. All paperwork will be done on the Labor and Delivery unit.

Yes. We offer scheduled tours quarterly and you can also arrange for a personal tour. Visit ourClasses and Events page or call 302-430-5739 for more information or to schedule your tour.

Yes. It is a good idea to select a pediatrician or family medicine doctor before you go into labor. If you don’t have a doctor for your baby, one will be assigned to take care of your newborn while in the hospital.

Please call your doctor or midwife before coming in. If it is after hours, you will be connected to an answering service that will put you in touch with the doctor or midwife on call. If you feel there is an emergency for you or your baby, please call 911.

Refer to the Labor Check List provided on the MyYoMingo app, Bayhealth's free online resource for expecting mothers. If you do not have a MyYoMingo account, please call the Education Department at 302-744-7135 for access.

Please bring 1 or 2 receiving blankets or a sleep sack, a going home outfit for the baby and a car seat. Everything else for the baby will be provided for you during your stay.

Yes. The hospital staff is not permitted to install your car seat, so you will need to make arrangements with the Department of Motor Vehicles. Trained technicians will install your seat for free. Visit ohs.delaware.gov/carseat.shtml to find a car seat fitting station near you and for other tips related to the proper installation and use of car seats. Bayhealth also offers car seat safety tips as part of its Infant Care class. Visit our Classes and Events page or call 302-744-7135 to learn more.

Please park in Parking Lot A and use the Emergency and Trauma Center entrance. Check in at the registration desk located in the Emergency and Trauma Center. The person at the desk will notify our Labor & Delivery team.

We are a patient- and family-focused facility so this number is determined based on us accommodating the expectant mother’s request and also by her condition. Your nurse can help you decide the best number depending on your individual needs and circumstances.

It is important to Bayhealth to protect your privacy at all times. At admission, the nurse needs to do a short, private assessment with you. There may be things that affect your care that your support person and family don’t know about, and you wish to keep private.

You will not be eating once you enter the hospital in labor. However, you can usually drink clear fluids such as water, ginger ale, juice, and ice chips. There may be circumstances that prohibit you from drinking fluids during your labor, and if this is so, your nurse will let you know. Once you have the baby and the doctor says it’s okay for you to eat, your nurse will show you how to order your meals.

Yes, a nurse will place a catheter in a vein in your arm to deliver fluids and medications as needed.

Healthy babies will “room in” with the mother during the hospital stay. Routine bathing, lab work and doctor visits will be conducted in the mother’s room. There are some exceptions, such as for circumcision and the hearing screening. Babies requiring a higher level of care will be transferred to a Special Care Nursery/Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

Your safety and the safety of your baby are our top priority. ID bands are placed on the baby immediately after birth. The mother and support person each receive a band for their wrist, and the baby will have one placed on the wrist and one on the ankle. The baby will also have a band with an alarm. All bands have identical matching numbers on them. Your baby will also have electronic footprints taken using the CertaScan system. Any time a baby is removed from the mother’s room, the bands are checked against the parent’s band by a registered nurse, and then checked again upon returning.

When outside the mother’s room, all infants must be transported in the rolling cribs. Infants are not to be carried in your arms in the corridors.

Infants are not to be left without the supervision of a responsible adult.

An electronic alarm system monitors the baby’s location within the hospital.

If you have any concerns or questions about an employee requesting to take your baby from your room, please do not hesitate to contact your nurse.