Sign at Aspen Women's Center

[*MamaJen*]

Have ya'll seen this image floating around? It's a sign allegedly hung up in Aspen Women's Center in Provo that reads, "Because the Physicians at Aspen Womens Center care about the quality of their patients deliveries and are very concerned about the welfare and health of your unborn child, we will not participate in: a Birth Contract, a Doulah Assisted, or a Bradley Method delivery. For those patients who are interested in such methods, please notify the nurse so we may arrange transfer of your care."
Just mind-blowing. Mind blowing.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/ph...d=135763722272

[bjorker]

Yeah I've been seeing that all over Facebook. Pretty shocking!!!

[soxthecatrules]

WOW!! Just WOW!!

I wouldn't want to give birth there and I pretty much have to have medicalized pregnancies and births. That kind of attitude is just plain wrong.

[mommy2maya]

Why is it wrong of them to be so upfront? Aren't we always talking about how we want a compatible care provider, and how it sucks when they seem to change their tune half way thru? Why is it ok for a mom to have demands, and wish to have them met, but not the other way around? Also, I feel like they are giving upfront notice, and that women who want those things would be happy and relieved to know right away that they are not the provider for them? I applaud them for being to upfront.

[fruitfulmomma]

Eh, at least they're upfront about their prejudices. I find it a little odd that they chose to use the "h" at the end of Doula.

to this hospital - http://www.lifebridgehealth.org/sinaibody.cfm?id=1929 - for implementing their own doula program for their moms. (Just googled 'doulah' and that was the only relevant site I came up with.)

[smeisnotapirate]

Did you take that picture? It looks Photoshopped to me.

[soso-lynn]

Originally Posted by fruitfulmomma

I find it a little odd that they chose to use the "h" at the end of Doula.

It makes it look more like some exotic thing. For someone who has never heard of doulas, the h project the image of strange women doing magic spells and such.

[leavemealone]

I think spelling it "doulah" looks a lot like "moulah" as in 'more moulah for us we don't have to deal with women who want a birth plan, doula and bradley childbirth' (not that women are wrong for not wanting those things).

[*MamaJen*]

Originally Posted by smeisnotapirate

Did you take that picture? It looks Photoshopped to me.

I didn't take it, though I don't see any overt signs of it being photoshopped, and as a reporter I tend to have a pretty good eye for that. I'm been trying to confirm it just poking around online. I haven't called or seen it myself, but I'm seeing lots of comments from women saying they called the clinic. It passes the smell test to me.

http://www.facebook.com/posted.php?i...#s168811502040

[mommy2maya]

looks photoshopped to me too, honestly. From the lettering right down to the shadow at the bottom of the sign.

[Belle]

I think its rediculous that they present these things as if they are somehow harmful to the babies.

Birth contracts/Plans. So they won't even discuss ahead of time what procedures the mothers do or don't want?

Doulas? Where do they draw the line at a doula? Friend, mother, sister, hired support person? What if a friend learned a lot about childbirth so she attend the birth with her and be educated. Oh wait, they're against women being educated about birth. Can't have these women using The Bradley method. They might decide that these epidurals and the cascade of interventions aren't that great after all.

[jennyfah]

If it's real---and I believe that it is---the most annoying part to me is the 'car[ing] about the quality of their patient's [sic] deliveries and are very concerned about the welfare and health of your unborn child' bit. I don't give a flying rat's patootie if they don't like doulas and Bradley students; lots of hospitals don't. It's absolutely the right of the clinic or care provider to say so. However, to flat-out state that being well-educated and/or bringing a professional labor assistant with one to her birth somehow DIMINISHES the quality of a woman's birth, or would in some way endanger the health and welfare of the child is ludicrous. What it endangers is their ability to cow women into procedures they don't want because they have to follow their precious policies. [/soapbox]

[Goddess3_2005]

I'm sure theres plenty of MDC mommies in the SLC area that could verify this.

[*MamaJen*]

I just shot off an email to the regular paper and the alternative weekly. I'd love to see some real reporting on it.

[Belle]

The best thing about that sign though is that I'm predicting there will be a mass exodus of women leaving their "care". Even women who weren't interested in those natural birthing at all will leave. Not everybody of course, but a significant number of their "patients" will high tail it outta there.

[pampered_mom]

According to this commenter over at The Unnecessarean it's real - she called about it. (Or these folks over here). Not conclusive I know, just thought I'd mention.

[ExuberantDaffodil]

and to make it even more odious, the misplaced apostrophe just tops it off as a truly atrocious sign.

[Amandamanda]

Originally Posted by Goddess3_2005

I'm sure theres plenty of MDC mommies in the SLC area that could verify this.

just called my friend in provo who goes to aspen for care and she said she has never seen any sign like that anywhere.
i guess it is POSSIBLE that she just doesnt pay very close attention to things on the wall- but i'm going to trust her on this one.

but that may be partially because i refuse to believe a practice like this exists.

[EviesMom]

Originally Posted by ExuberantDaffodil

and to make it even more odious, the misplaced apostrophe just tops it off as a truly atrocious sign.

That is only the beginning of the errors that would make their Language Arts teachers groan. Forget birthing there, I would be sorely tempted to get a red paint pen and mark the many mistakes--- like the fact that as written it claims all the physicians in the practice have only 1 patient amongst them, and apparently she is having the sign reader's baby.

[AlexisT]

Well, at least they don't spring it on the patients at 32 weeks.

An article in the New York Times a year or so ago mentioned a whole hospital that banned doulas.