Newburgh – St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital (SLCH) in conjunction with Maternal-Infant Services Network of Orange, Sullivan and Ulster counties, Inc. (MISN) will offer six, four-week sessions in 2009 to give expectant parents a comprehensive overview of pregnancy, useful information about nutrition and weight gain, answers to questions about pain during labor and coping skills, holistic interventions and medications for relief.
The free sessions, which consist of two-hour classes that begin at 6:30 p.m. and run for four consecutive weeks, begin on January 8th, March 5th, May 7th, July 9th, September 3rd and November 5th. They are designed to help reduce anxiety and impart practical knowledge to comfort a laboring mother and her partner during the birth process. The class also will prepare parents for the unexpected, such as the possibility of a cesarean section and postpartum depression. Other topics will focus on educating new parents on such issues as newborn care and breastfeeding.
Birthing partners will learn how to play an active role in the pregnancy while becoming familiar with the important part they play supporting and advocating for the mother during delivery. Participants also will have the opportunity to make connections with other expectant parents.
Classes will be held at SLCH’s Newburgh campus; instructor, Liz Pickett, CD, PCD (DONA), a perinatal health educator will lead each session. To view a schedule of classes, visit www.stlukescornwallhospital.org or the MISN website at www.misn-ny.org. To receive more information or to register for one of the six sessions, call Maternal Infant Services Network at (845) 750-6265. Tours of SLCH’s Birthing Center, which features luxurious birthing suites, are given on Sunday afternoons. To schedule a tour, call (845) 568-2365.
