SUMTER, S.C. (AP) - It’s not the traditional approach, but it does have fans.
For the last year, Sumter OB-GYN has been offering CenteringPregnancy.
“It’s a model of care for low-risk patients that takes them out of the traditional setting of one-on-one with a physician behind a closed door and moves them to a group setting where they see each other every two-to-four weeks for two hours,” said Tori Whitaker, practice manager. “It takes the mystery out of the process. It empowers the patient to be more involved in the pregnancy and provides a support system.”
Group meetings start after the traditional visit around the 10-to-12-weeks mark. If you’re a candidate and choose Centering, you’ll meet with up to 11 other women due to deliver within a month of your date until about the 36-weeks mark, Whitaker said. Then you will return to the private setting until you deliver and return for a celebration after the babies are born.
When the women come in, they take and record their vitals, Whitaker said. Then they can enjoy refreshments and talk while each individual goes behind a partition for “tummy time.”
“This is when the physician measures the woman’s belly and listens to fetal heart tones,” Whitaker said.
While over there, a board is set up for the women to write any questions they don’t feel comfortable asking out loud. Then they circle up to go over educational material.
Seven women who recently met talked about gifts they’d received and recommended shopping sites to each other. They discussed baby’s movement pattern and started talking about what to do after the baby comes.
“That pre-planning is so important,” said Kristine Farley, a certified surgical technician and one of the co-facilitators for CenteringPregnancy. “What I like is it combines quality care with a community feel. A lot of consistent data shows it reduces pre-term labor and leads to better development for the baby. It’s almost like a preventive measure.”
Kelliann Wineski is expecting her first child and was hesitant to sign up for the program.
“I’d never really heard of it, but they told me I’d get more out of it,” she said. “You get more attention. I have definitely learned a lot, (and) it’s been a good experience. If you forgot to ask a question, you still have time to ask it.”
Dominique Bellamy is having her second child, and she loved the class, too.
“This is great,” she said. “Everyone should do it.”
Rose Bridges came to support her daughter, Marissa Tindal, who is having her first child.
“I didn’t attend any classes (or programs),” Bridges said. “I thought I knew everything. Marissa wanted to make sure. It’s been helpful to her. She doesn’t ask me as many questions now.”
If a pregnancy becomes complicated, such as the development of gestational diabetes, the woman can continue to participate in Centering if she chooses, but she will have additional, private visits with her doctor.
“We have a couple of patients who are borderline that we’d like to keep a close eye on,” said Dr. Mark Hucks. “It’s amazing how plugged in they get and love it. It can feel like you go to the doctor 400 times while you’re pregnant, and you get tons of information. With every visit, they can now take more time to talk.”
With four groups having graduated, 22 women have gone through the program. Six other groups are currently meeting, and group 11 starts this month.
The program was initially funded by a $34,000 grant from South Carolina Medicaid and the March of Dimes administered by Greenville Health Systems that started the program in the state about six years ago. Sumter OB-GYN was one of four awarded money at the time, and select staff was trained in CenteringPregnancy.
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Information from: The Sumter Item, https://www.theitem.com
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