STAR VALLEY, Wyo. — Star Valley Health has expanded its obstetrics (OB) team and will be implementing new OB medical devices in hospital ambulances this year.
The health team includes four delivery doctors: OB/GYN Dr. Donald Howser, who joined Star Valley Health this year, family medicine doctors Dr. Todd Haderlie and Dr. Christian Morgan and hospitalist Dr. Clayton Brown.
Together, these doctors have more than 90 years of combined experience and have delivered more than 10,000 babies. The suite of services available at Star Valley Health supports each season of a woman’s birth journey.
Benefits of care throughout pregnancy
Before the birth, there’s prenatal care. Prenatal services are critical to a healthy pregnancy. Monthly checkups scale up to weekly visits throughout a patient’s pregnancy and may be scheduled more often for high-risk or multiple pregnancies. Local prenatal services offer a major benefit to families. Star Valley Health’s obstetricians and family medicine doctors operate out of clinics throughout Western Wyoming.
Star Valley Health also provides free childbirth education classes as a service to the community. Classes are offered each quarter and cover a wide range of topics, from labor and delivery to breastfeeding and postpartum. Through these prenatal and educational services, women learn to manage their pregnancy and create an informed birth plan.
Then, there’s the big day. The hospital’s scheduling ensures a delivery doctor is always on call. Families can also expect labor and delivery support from a dynamic team that includes OB nurses, anesthesiologists and respiratory therapists.
Reimagined labor and delivery suites
The hospital’s labor and delivery rooms have expanded and been redesigned in recent years. Three birthing suites are self-contained in a private maternity ward, with a nursery and dedicated OB nurse station. Tours are available for families interested in learning more about the facility. Along with the maternity ward, Star Valley Health supports labor and delivery with three surgical suites, as well as an on-site laboratory and blood bank.
In some cases, patients may need to be transferred to a regional hospital – for example, for additional support in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Star Valley Health’s EMS team partners with these organizations for air transport and provides OB transport by ambulance.
EMT and paramedics provide safe transport
The benefits of OB transport are many. Each ambulance is staffed by an EMT and paramedic, and at times an OB nurse may also accompany. Severe weather and long drive times pose high risks to women in labor. With OB transport, medical resources are readily available. Along with emergency transfers, OB transport can also play a key role in providing care for women who opt for delivery at a regional facility and need safe travel while in labor or who experience complications during a home birth.
Currently, Star Valley Health’s ambulances are equipped with an OB emergency kit and a doppler to monitor fetal heart rate (FHR). Later this year a maternal transport monitor will be implemented, a medical device that continually monitors contractions and includes FHR capabilities for twins.
Learn more about Star Valley Health’s obstetrics services here.
