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Services for New Parents and Babies

Services available to new parents and their newborns in the postpartum unit at Boston Medical Center (BMC) include:

  • Help from postpartum doulas
  • Breastfeeding support
  • Specialized medical care in the Level III NICU

After returning home, postpartum care and newborn checkups are available close to your home through BMC-affiliated Community Health Centers (CHCs) and through the Curbside Care mobile Program.

The Division of Newborn Medicine has a general policy to provide pain-free newborn care.

Birth Sisters

The Birth Sisters Program is an innovative, diverse pregnancy and birth support service that offers people “sister-like” support from trained doulas during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period.

The Birth Sister meets the expectant parent when they are pregnant, stays with and supports them during labor and delivery, and visits them at home during the first week. Your Birth Sister can help with laundry, errands, or the care of other children so you can focus on recovery and your new baby.

The Birth Sisters are approximately 15 Boston Medical Center employees who work on a per diem basis. They:

  • Are people interested in helping birthing people during childbirth and in the early days of a new baby’s life at home
  • Are trained labor support specialists and lactation peer educators
  • Are members of your health care team who are used to working with your doctor or midwife
  • Collectively speak more than seven languages, and represent more than six different ethnicities

To arrange for a Birth Sister, speak with your midwife or doctor, or call 617.414.5168.

Learn More about the Program

Breastfeeding Support

BMC is a World Health Organization/UNICEF designated Baby-Friendly Hospital. Through the Breastfeeding and Lactation Medicine Center, BMC provides families with prenatal breastfeeding information, breastfeeding classes, lactation consultants, breastfeeding rooms (for both parents and staff), peer-counseling support groups, and a telephone support line, 617.414.MILK (6455).

Learn How BMC Supports Breastfeeding

The Breastfeeding Medicine Clinic, located in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, cares for lactating patients and their infants with complex breastfeeding problems that require medical management. BMC Health System patients can be referred to the clinic by a BMC provider or lactation consultant.

Explore Breastfeeding and Lactation Medicine Center Resources

Care Close to Home

Community Health Centers

Midwives and physicians of BMC Health System’s Division of Community Obstetrics & Gynecology practice in many of the Boston HealthNet (BMC-affiliated) Community Health Centers (CHCs) located in the different neighborhoods of Boston.

Call 617.414.5785 or 617.414.5983 to find the community health center closest to your home.

View a List of Community Health Centers

Curbside Care

Curbside Care is Boston Medical Center’s innovative mobile health program that provides comprehensive care to both birthing people and their newborns for the first month after birth. Our multidisciplinary team works on a mobile clinic, so we can provide care to you and your baby, right outside your home! Our goal is to increase access to postpartum care, so you and your baby can be as healthy as possible.

Learn More about Curbside Care

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)

A specialized team of professionals in the 15-bed, Level III nursery, or neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), care for infants who require close observation and additional therapy. They provide families with medical and emotional support.

Pain-Free Newborn Care

Pain-Free Newborn Care is a policy for BMC providers and staff that is designed to minimize the pain and discomfort associated with a pediatric patient’s hospital visit.

For newborns undergoing the heel stick associated with the newborn metabolic screen, it is recommended that the physician:

  1. Perform the test while the baby is held (by a parent or family member) skin-to-skin.
  2. Perform the test while the baby is breastfeeding.*

For newborns undergoing a blood draw or an IV insertion:

  1. Babies are given sucrose 12 percent oral solution by oral syringe two to three minutes before the procedure.
  2. During the procedure, a gloved finger is offered for the baby to suck.
  3. The medical staff attempts to get the baby back to the parent or family as soon as possible after a painful procedure so the baby can be held or breastfed.*

For newborns undergoing a circumcision, the following analgesics are recommended:

  1. ELAMAX (lidocaine cream) applied to the penis about 30 minutes before the procedure.
  2. Acetaminophen given orally before the procedure.
  3. Buffered lidocaine (with bicarbonate added) administered for penile block.
  4. Sucrose 12 percent oral solution given by syringe two to three minutes before the procedure.
  5. Pacifier offered during the procedure (but thrown away before baby returns to parents).
  6. Ideally, baby should go back to parents and be held and breastfed* after the procedure.

* Gray L, Miller LW, Philipp BL, Blass EM. Breastfeeding is analgesic in healthy newborns. Pediatrics 2002;109(4):590-593.