I finally picked a primary clinic in the Brainerd area and straightened out my new insurance policy that will begin Sept 1 (whew! with two days to spare). I settled on Lakewood Clinic, located in Pillager, which means I will have to use the hospital in Staples for delivering our baby. The hospital is a 30 minute drive from Brainerd (or 45 minutes from Nisswa), but I've heard really good things about the doctors and nurses and their willingness to tailor the birth to the preferences of their patients. It is also appealing to me that I can select a family practice doctor for the delivery, although there is an OB/GYN on staff in a worse case scenario. The Lakewood customer service person told me that they have many OB patients who come over from the Brainerd and Nisswa areas, so I guess I'm not alone. I was also pleased to hear that their birthing suites include a room-in option for the infant, and that John can stay overnight in the suite, too, if he wants.
Tomorrow, John and I are headed to Duluth, where I will make a half day out of getting my monthly allergy shot, going to an OB appointment, and then tracking down all my medical records to bring with me once my new insurance starts. After that we are headed to Brule River to camp and then Wisconsin to do some lake sampling for my research assistantship. Hopefully we'll have time to fish the Brule during the weekend, too.
Happy Labor Day!
3 comments:
Wise decision. I could be delivering #2 at a hospital 7 minutes from my house...but I'm choosing instead to deliver at one 35 minutes from home (in non-rush hour) - of course its because that's where my new OB delivers. You have plenty of time to get to the hospital - and if not, be thankful your labor is that quick...or you can call 911 for an ambulence
Beth,
I served on a committee with the CEO of that Health System and was favorably impressed with him and his vision of what a rural health syestem should be. I think you made a good choice.
Dad (soon to be a Granddad again!)
I also think it is a wise decision . . . although I have to admit that driving in the car while in labor is no picnic. But if the difference is only fifteen minutes anyway . . .
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