A birth plan is a document that tells your doctor and the hospital staff how you’d like your labour and delivery to progress. While a birth plan is a good way to prepare for birth, do remember that labour and delivery is an extremely unpredictable process. There are times when your doctor will be unable to follow your requests, so you will have to be flexible here.
Unfortunately, some doctors in Singapore charge an additional amount (between $150-$350) to review your birth plan so it’s best to clarify this from the beginning.
How To Make Your Own Birth Plan
However, do also note that that there are just as many doctors who will gladly review and follow your birth plan without any additional costs.
Here are a few questions you might want to include in your plan:
1. Labour
1. I would like to give birth at _______ (Hospital? Home? Etc)
2. If labour begins naturally, when would you like to be admitted? You may begin to start feeling contractions hours before your water breaks, so it’s completely up to you whether you want to head right off. Going to the hospital too early may mean that you end up waiting in the ward for a long time to go into true labour. And, labouring at home for the first stages may be more comfortable, compared to being hooked up to a monitor.
3. What birthing aids would you like? A birthing pool (only available at NUH) birthing stool, birthing ball, aromatherapy, music, heat packs, a mirror so you can see your birth?
4. What sort of ambience would you like the hospital to be? Would you like dim lights, music to be playing?
Labour Questions You Need To Ask In Your Birth Plan
1. You also need answers to questions like who do you want in the room with you when you deliver and/or need a C-section? Having a partner you can lean on or support can be very useful during labour. Most hospitals in Singapore allow a maximum of just 1 companion in your birthing room (excluding your doula).
2. Would you like this companion to be your spouse or your own mother perhaps?
3 What type of labour do you want? There are several labour and delivery options available to you as an expectant mother. You could opt to have a natural birth without pain relief, natural birth with pain relief, or an elective C-section. Explore all of your options and give them some serious thought. You won’t be in the right state of mind to make a decision during labour, so plan beforehand. This is something you should speak to your doctor about, and also someone who knows your medical history and can give you more information. Here are details on various pain relief options.
4. Are you willing to have induced labour? Your doctor may suggest induction if he or she is not available to deliver your baby on the day you’re due. There is also a possibility that you are having contractions but your water has not broken. In either case, you need to make a decision about when you want labour to begin. It’s worth giving serious thought beforehand, especially if you’re wanting relatively drug-free labour and delivery. There could be circumstances that you may not expect, so talk to your doctor.
8. Are you willing to have an emergency C-section if required?
9. Are you open to an episiotomy? An episiotomy is a surgical cut to your perineum, which is the muscular area between your vagina and your back passage. This cut helps your baby to be born, particularly if you’re having an assisted birth or if your vagina is not stretching enough during birth.
2. Afterbirth
1. What would you like to do with the placenta after giving birth? (Would you like to have it encapsulated for your consumption? Encapsulation services cost around $300 for about 150 capsules. In Singapore, placentophagy is fairly common as the dried placenta is believed to be restorative).
Ask yourself: Do you want to donate it to a public cord bank or pay to have it privately banked in case you need it? | Image courtesy: Pixabay
2. Cutting of baby’s cord. When should they cut the cord? Who will cut baby’s cord? Do you consent to umbilical cord clamping prior to baby establishing respiration?
3. Do you intend to cord blood bank? (Your baby’s umbilical cord blood is a precious source of stem cells that can potentially save lives. Do you want to donate it to a public cord bank or pay to have it privately banked in case you need it? Both options have their pros and cons, so it’s something worth looking into).
4. Do you have any special wishes for the first moments after your baby is born? Do you want your baby cleaned before he is given to you or do you want him to be put into your arms immediately? Would you like skin-to-skin contact?
5. Do you want to be left alone with your baby and your partner for a few minutes immediately after the birth?
6. What are your desires with regard to breastfeeding? Evidence suggests that the best time to begin breastfeeding is within 30 to 60 minutes after birth when the baby is most alert. WHO recommends that mothers exclusively breastfeed their baby for six months after giving birth.
3. Additional Tips For Writing A Birth Plan
1. Use short paragraphs, clear subheadings and bullet points where possible and avoid convoluted language.
2. Discuss your birth plan draft with your doctor. These discussions will help you learn how compatible your wishes are with your doctor’s and hospital’s practices.
3. Keep a positive tone about what you want and don’t want in your plan. Always remember to present your plan as a request rather than demands.
4. You should print out copies of your birth plan for your doctor, send one to the hospital, give one to your coach, or hubby and bring one with you on D-day.
4. What Your Birth Plan Needs To Factor In During The Pandemic?
1. Create your own supply kit that can be carried to the hospital and back that covers all the essentials during the pandemic. Your kit should include multiple face masks, a face shield, gloves, and a sanitiser aerosol spray and liquid respectively.
2. The kit also needs to have a quick change of clothes, should the need be.
3. Look at alternatives including labouring at home, should there be a spike in the number of cases that will increase the risk.
4. Limit the number of visitors at the hospital or home to keep your baby and you free of possible contamination.
5. Opt for home-delivery service for the initial weeks postpartum. This is right from ordering food to groceries, and medicines. You can also speak to your gynaecologist for conducting virtual consultations in the future, unless its absolutely necessary to pay a visit to the hospital.
Is A Cord Bank Safe In The Post Pandemic Era?
The impact of COVID-19 has made parents more mindful and concerned about their children’s future health. With the pandemic being an eye-opener of the global healthcare system, the paranoia may be justified too. This has prompted a rise in enquiries about cord blood stem cell banking.
Future Health Biobank suggests that while there are some early-phase studies into stem cells and the coronavirus, there is no evidence that suggests a preventive link using cord blood stem cell banking. However, the motivation to preserve cord blood does remain the same with access to a rich source of stem cells that can be used to treat future illnesses.
So, should you bank cord blood during the pandemic? If you’ve made up your mind then you should go ahead with it. The private banks test mothers regularly for diseases and illnesses that may affect the cord blood or tissue collection at birth. The mother and the partner are also screened for their medical histories for risk of COVID-19.
Globally, there has been no change in the way cord blood banks work. To gain an in-depth about how cord blood banks work, make sure to speak to your gynaecologist before taking the important step in safeguarding your child’s future health.
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