Submitted by Forsaken_Painter t3_yjmk9y in CambridgeMA
I live in Cambridge and am newly pregnant and looking into my options nearby. Either CHA or Mount Auburn appeals to me. I'd be interested in them even if I didn't live in Cambridge, to be honest. Has anyone had their baby at either of these places and could you tell me a little about your experience? This is my first pregnancy and I don't know anyone who's delivered at either!
Thanks :)
This is great perspective. Thanks so much!
Mount Auburn, years ago. Food was delicious even for SO. Room really luxurious.
They almost killed my daughter, won’t go into details here.
And then gorgeous incubator they had in the room didn’t work. My kid had to be rushed out of the room to one that did. When I saw the faces of worry in the nurses, I knew this wasn’t us being first time parents, but the real deal.
CHA seems even worse. Only there once for ER years ago. It was a terrible experience.
Go to MGH. It’s not as pretty but, they know what the f are doing.
Also had my first two at mount auburn. My second birth was quite traumatic due to nurse error. Also, as a teaching hospital, be prepared for a new nurse to do catheters and the like on you…not fun.
In our case it was doctors error.
I’m so sorry you went through that.
So sorry to hear about your experience!
One thing i forgot to add, for kid #2 we were suggested to go to MGH, because we were not as young and there were some risks.
As I wrote, it’s not as luxurious as Mt Auburn, and kinda massive, but our second was born perfectly well and without hiccups or broken equipment.
If Mt Auburn is an Audi: pretty but spotty quality then MGH is a Toyota: sturdy but reliable
My wife delivered our first at the birth center (part of CHA, across the street) and loved it. For our second, the birth center was closed because of COVID, so she delivered at CHA with the same midwives from the birth center. She loved the midwives both times, but definitely preferred the home-y feel of the birth center compared to the hospital building. But we had no problems other than that from CHA. We'd recommend it, but also have no experienced with Mt. Auburn.
This is the option I'm looking into at CHA so it's great to hear this perspective. Thank you!
My kid was also born at the birth center and it was a good experience. Of course that was 20 years ago
I’ve heard only good things about the birth center! It’s a shame it’s closed right now due to covid but hopefully will open again in the not too distant future.
Wife delivered at Mount Auburn in 2016. Wanted to do natural, but ended up needing a scheduled c-section due to a few complicating factors. Every aspect of the experience was wonderful. My wife is a POC, so was very nervous about the risks associated with women of color and childbirth, so we were both extremely vigilant and relentless self-advocates. We stayed in a huge comfortable room for 4 days. Even though they are not known as c-section specialists, her doctor was amazing and her scar barely shows. Our baby was 4lb 11oz when we left the hospital, but super healthy (she was 4 weeks 'early'). All in all, a really great experience there, zero complaints.
This is great to hear. Can I ask if your wife was working with the midwives or the OBs?
OB - she also did the surgery - https://www.mountauburnhospital.org/find-a-provider/profile/taylor-hotchkiss/
Mount Auburn, no question. CHA is… not great.
Thanks for the input! Could you elaborate? I had heard good things!
Mount Auburn knows what they’re doing and is prepared for emergencies.
Read the google reviews of CHA - it’s a small piece of the horror stories.
I'll check it out. Thanks!
Trigger warning: pregnancy loss
Went to CHA for the beginning of my pregnancy. Didn’t once see a doctor in person (spring 2022). At my first ultrasound, there was a student who did a terrible job (I’ve never had a painful ultrasound before, but apparently that’s possible) and it turns out I was having a missed miscarriage. I found this out by googling and talking to friends because there wasn’t a single doctor in the building during my ultrasound, so they called me several hours later for a random secretary to read me the doctor’s report. Also they never bothered turning on the monitor for me to see what was happening. Went in for blood tests a couple days later and the receptionist greeted me with “you’re not pregnant, right?” Great thing to say to a woman mid-miscarriage. They never checked HCG levels, and apparently that draw was just for blood typing.
My husband was able to get me transferred to a doctor at Brookline OB/GYN (admitting privileges/surgeries at the Brigham) during that same week. At the new practice, I had a painless ultrasound and a doctor came into the room to confirm the diagnosis and show me everything on the scan. Then I was immediately seen by my new OB, where we discussed my options. Had surgery at the Brigham and my care was exceptional.
Avoid CHA at all costs.
I'm so sorry for both your loss and your experience there. Thank you for sharing as it's helpful to hear the negative as well as the positive.
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Thanks so much for this great info! And I’m so sorry for your loss earlier this year.
Are these options limited by your insurance?
fortunately, no!
Good! I've heard amazing things about L&D at both Beth Israel and Newton-Wellsley. I think I'm personally going to choose BIDMC.
Thanks for your input! I'll look into it!
Beth Israel was amazing! The whole staff was very respectful and followed our birth plan. Our other kiddo at Mount Auburn was not a good experience.
Thanks for the input! Beth Israel seems like a good option too.
That's awesome to hear about BI. We're attending an online Q&A session next week with them! They also seem to have lots of education classes available too.
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I had a great experience delivering baby #2 (#1 was out of state) at Mount Auburn in May of 2020. Great experience even given the crazy timing (early Covid) and a more complicated delivery (VBAC and induction way past due date). I have no hesitation is recommending Mount Auburn! Happy to chat more via DM. Good luck!
I have heard that they are great for vbac! This is my first so everything’s new to me but so glad to hear you had a positive experience!
I had terrible experiences at CHA. Basically, my PCP kept gaslighting me saying there was nothing wrong with me and refuse to investigate the matter further. Went back home to have a second opinion and turned out that there was something wrong with me and I needed treatment asap.
Also, saw their GI specialist remotely (teleconsultation), they charged me for the appointment and then for facility fees (despite the fact I never used their facility since the appointment was online).
Sorry to hear that! Glad you followed your gut!
Just chiming in as some others have recommended neither. We had our child at the Brigham in 2018 - I was high risk, so I was in MFM but I couldn’t imagine having a child anywhere else. They’re literally connected to Children’s, so IF something needs the highest level of care, they don’t even have to go outside. For me, as I mentioned, high risk (placenta previa, brain aneurysm) and they were so on top of things, making me feel like it would be ok, and ultimately is was. But I can tell you that when I wasn’t doing well and our child wasn’t breathing, my husband was so grateful to be there.
I’ve heard good things about Brigham as well! Definitely seems like a good place to be especially if you’re high risk.
Had a great experience at Mt Auburn this summer with our first. Labor and delivery was not easy but we had an amazing on-call OB, great nurses, and the hospital was very accommodating to our doula.
Our girl wound up needing to stay an extra couple days with jaundice and the maternity team was equally wonderful. The food is…fine, but Otto’s and a bunch of other places will deliver.
So glad to hear you had a good experience! Were you working primarily with the OBs or the midwives? I know that's an option there.
My wife’s OB is affiliated with Mt Auburn, so we worked primarily with her.
The midwives at Mt. Auburn helped deliver our baby; my wife really thinks highly of them.
That’s awesome! Thanks for sharing. Interested in working with the midwives, as well.
We had an amazing experience at the birth center at CHA. Hospitals are for sick people. Not for giving birth.
Unfortunately it is closed right now, but I have heard great things about the birth center!
literary-chickens t1_iuoulb0 wrote
One of CHA's central goals is getting medical care to poor & underserved populations. If you don't fall into those categories, then yeah, Mount Auburn is going to have way nicer amenities! But CHA isn't *bad* as an overall org. It's just population-health oriented & thus a little rougher around the edges.