New Intermountain Hospital in Spanish Fork: A Tour in Pictures of the Labor and Delivery Wing

5/9/23 UPDATE

Back in April 2021, when the new Spanish Fork Hospital opened its doors, I heard news of a plan to open a birth center in the adjacent Valley Women's Health clinic. I even toured the hospital and saw the birth center under construction (photos and description in the original blog post--scroll down). I was thrilled to hear the news, and so many of you were, too!

Recently, I called to check in on the status of this birth center, and was told that the plans to open it were on hold, with no anticipation of moving forward.

If this news is devastating to you, like it was to me, I have come up with a solution! I want the Valley Women's Health Spanish Fork clinic and the Spanish Fork Hospital to hear our voices! I have written form letters that you can personalize as little or as much as you'd like and send to the hospital CEO and the OB/GYN director at Valley Women's Health in Spanish Fork.

If you want to make your voice heard, this is a quick way to do that! Hospitals and clinics are businesses, and we're their customers. They need to hear from us! Click the button below to access a Google Doc with the letters, download a copy, personalize, print, and send them in the mail!

Please share this news and the form letters with anyone you know who may be interested in having a birth center adjacent to the Spanish Fork Hospital!

I want to send a letter!

Original Post: 4/6/2021

The new Intermountain hospital in Spanish Fork opened yesterday (April 5, 2021), and let me tell you... they are doing things right for birthing families! I had the privilege of touring the hospital a couple of weeks ago, and I am just giddy with some of the features they included in their Women and Newborn wing. I'll highlight my favorites below.

First of all, will you just take a look at this gorgeous tub?!

There are six labor and delivery rooms in the new Spanish Fork, and three of them feature one of these beauties! The tubs have a variety of built-in stools and foot rests to enable a variety of labor positions in the tub. The hospital isn't currently set up for water births, but these tubs do drain quickly if baby is coming and you don't want to climb out of the tub.

These fantastic tubs are the central features of the large labor and delivery rooms they are in, which also include a couch that folds out into a bed, a recliner, a bathroom with a shower, and plenty of room to walk/dance/squat/do whatever feels right! The hospital will also have wireless, waterproof contraction/fetal monitors to enable monitoring and movement simultaneously.

After birthing your baby in one of these rooms, you'll then move down the hall to the other side of the unit to a postpartum room. There are twelve postpartum rooms, and they are attended by the same nurses who attend the labor and delivery rooms, enabling greater continuity of care throughout your stay at the hospital. As a special touch, each family will enjoy a celebration meal in their postpartum room, served at a decorated table on beautiful dishes. What a fun idea!

For families who want to expedite their hospital stay, the Spanish Fork hospital also has one room for their Simply Birth program. Participants in this program do most of their postpartum education at home so that they can check out of the hospital faster after birth. The largest room at the end of the hallway in the Mother and Newborn unit is reserved for participants in the Simply Birth program, who will labor, give birth, and recover in the same room. Here it is:

I can't wait to see all of these features put to use as I support clients birthing at this hospital! And...........

In about two years, things will be even better!

That's the projected timeline for the opening of the birth center that is adjacent to the hospital! This space is technically not part of the hospital, though the two buildings are connected. The birth center will be staffed by Certified Nurse Midwives who work at the Intermountain clinic alongside the hospital.

The birth center is currently under construction, but I got to take a peek at it as well! There will be two birthing rooms at the birth center, which right now look something like this:

Let's zoom in on some of my favorite features! Here's a close-up of the nice large tub in the birthing center, as well as ceiling attachments for a labor sling!

Rather than a narrow hospital bed, these birth center rooms will feature a queen size bed with room for the whole family. The beds haven't been installed yet, but I took a picture of the wall where the bed will go so that you can fill it in with a queen size bed in your mind.

I know it doesn't look like much now, but in my mind's eye I can just see a family, snuggled side by side, tucked into bed with their new baby, with room for newly-minted big sisters and big brothers to climb in and meet the new addition!

Which brings me to the final two pictures from my tour: the family lounge and kitchen that will be part of the birth center when it opens in about two years. They're not finished yet, but here are a couple of pictures to give you an idea:

I love that this birth center will be right next to the hospital, to give families peace of mind in knowing that if a transfer to the hospital is needed (or desired), it's just a quick walk/roll down the hallway that connects the two fourth-floor facilities.

What questions do you have about the new birthing facilities in Spanish Fork? I'm not an expert, or an Intermountain employee, but I did ask a lot of questions on the tour! I'd be happy to chat more!

I can't wait for families of Utah County to start enjoying these new facilities! I look forward to supporting many families as a doula in these awesome new spaces!