Hospital rules? Cant take my placenta home?

[MJoKirk]

I am planning a homebirth, but have been seeing an OB as well. I have no intention of going to the hospital, but my circumstances are less than ideal this time around (I had a great homebirth with my dd) and needed to have the option available. So...I have a birth plan in place with the hospital- more for postpartum/newborn care stuff, since if I go to the hospital I will likely be in a position to not be as concerned about the birth itself, KWIM?

Anyways, one of the major things was "please do not discard our placenta, it will be coming home with us." Apparently this is a NO GO. My OB is very reasonable, and has no problem with anything else. He even says he knows I am a reasonable person and I wouldnt be selling it on ebay or throwing it at a car on the highway or something (yeah, he said that, lol) but that hospital rules prohibit taking body parts out of the hospital. This includes kidney stones and such that you used to be able to take home no problem-now you cant.

Any idea about this? Anyone have any experience with this? I doubt I will have to worry about it. But if I go to the hospital- that is MY placenta and throwing it away is pretty much the worst thing I can imagine. Any wonderful suggestions as to how to go about getting my placenta should I need to fight this fight? I think at my appt next week I am going to ask what they would do if I chose to have a lotus birth, and baby and placenta were still attached to each other...we shall see what he says to that.

[Burnindinner]

Just talked this over with my CNM today. Had an awesome hb with DS, risked out this time. It sounds like it sort of depends on the nurse. At our hospital they put the placenta in a bucket in the trash, then if you move quick you can take it out and sneak it out when they are not looking. Do you have a doula who could transfer with you who would be able to tell you if she has seen that done before? Would she be willing to snatch it for you?

[sparkysgirl]

Had a discussion with my placenta encapsulation lady about how to handle the hosptial in the event of a transfer. Anyway, I remember her telling me that as a last resort you can ask to sign a release form, they should at least have a release of "products of conception" form or something like that. There was a case a while back where a woman sued her hospital for hers, she won (i think it was in nevada??) you could use that as well, but they ended up ruining hers because they didn't keep it properly. Also she said to use some line about the "spiritual nature" of the placenta...basically make it sound like its about your religious beliefs, if that doesn't work then go with the release form.

[luv-my-boys]

I have two questions:

1. Does the hosp. send the placenta to the lab for patholody..basically verifying its all there (even though the HCP delivering you would do the same)?

2. if not could your OB look the other way, such as wow can we see it...heres a container and hope in the bustle of everything no one notices?

[buckeye_bebe]

I took my placenta home. They boxed it up for me in the emergency suite. It was a nice plastic container, kind of like the plastic buckets that the cheap bulk ice cream come in. One nurse was thrilled and told me all about a hispanic ritual and she was happy to see someone taking her placenta. Another nurse commented about how there has been an increase in mom's wanting theirs, and how she just didn't get it. I mentioned to them I've seen art made from them, and jewelry made from the cord. And a teddy bear from the caul.

I did this all without any advance warning or birth plan. But...I did have a cooler in the car packed with ice packs so that we could bring the cooler in for the placenta receptacle. I was prepared to argue, but honestly, they didn't care.

However, the head nurse warned me I should call ahead of time so she could inform the nurses and do some "education", but I never bothered. It is mine, I'm taking it home. Good luck.

PS - I was prepared to argue. First, if they want a sample of it for pathology, fine. They can section out a 1x1 square. No problem. I get the rest. Second, it is mine, I am in possession of my own tissues at all times, and it is up to my discretion to dispose of such tissues as I please, within the law. Third, I demand to see any written policy specifically in reference to the placenta, not generic body fluids or tissue. If it really came down to it, I could delivery my own placenta in to my own receptacle, or demand privacy and deliver it unattended. I don't need help expelling it, unless the one in a million chance of having a problem pops up. There are a lot of other arguments too, but I'm too stubborn to give in, and that was what I was most prepared for. Ended up not being any issue at all.
Good luck!

[chellebee]

You could check your state laws. In my understanding some states newly have some laws in place that protect your rights to your placenta. Our state (WA) is not one of them, but there is nothing in the law PREVENTING someone from taking home their own tissues. Anything barring this would be "hospital policy" and could be legally challenged...or at least threatened to be legally challenged if not released.

I would also suggest talking to the charge nurse to see if s/he has a different opinion. I have seen this vary widely within single hospitals, so sometimes you can do the whole 'ask until you get what you wanted to hear' route, and then say so-and-so said.

You can also offer to sign a medical release. I did this with mine...it was a "surgical specimen" form to release biohazardous material. They may want to take it to pathology before releasing it. If that happened, you would just want to make sure they know this is not to be treated with any chemicals.

Hopefully this will be a non-issue for you!

[lunita1]

At some hospitals, they will put the placenta in a biohazard container for disposal, but "forget" to toss it for you. It's not officially given to you to take (\that's not officially allowed, because it is technically considered biohazardous waste), but no one stops you from walking out with it.

Mine were in hard plastic containers, inside plastic trash bags marked "biohazard" or something like that.

[UberMama]

I would ask what they do with it! With the hospital I'm delivering at, I have to sign a few papers for the pathology department before I even enter the hospital to get the placenta later on. The OB told me it'd be put in a biohazard bag and that my DH should take it out of the hospital quickly, as some nurses like to try and toss it. :/

But I'd ask what they do with it to get a better understanding. Most hospitals toss it, but some pathology dept's take it no matter what (and some only when something is wrong with mom or babe).

[Belle]

Originally Posted by lunita1

At some hospitals, they will put the placenta in a biohazard container for disposal, but "forget" to toss it for you. It's not officially given to you to take (\that's not officially allowed, because it is technically considered biohazardous waste), but no one stops you from walking out with it.

Mine were in hard plastic containers, inside plastic trash bags marked "biohazard" or something like that.

I attended a birth as a doula where the nurse packed up the placenta in a biohazard container. The parents stated that they wanted to take it home. She said she'd just leave it here and if it disappeared when she was out of the room she wouldn't try to track it down. She did advise them not to leave in in a hot car though and to take it straight home.

If you don't get a supportive nurse one thing you could also do is to ask them to leave it in the room so that you could check it out when you get around to it. Its not that unusual for people to show interest in the organ that kept their baby alive. Just tell them you'll get around to looking at it later, right now you're busy with your baby.