Norton Healthcare delivers more babies in Louisville and Southern Indiana than any other provider. We offer a range of delivery options for your birth plan, including natural birth.

You have a lot of options when choosing how you’d like to give birth. Natural birth has become very popular. Despite some misconceptions, women can have a natural, drug-free childbirth in a hospital.

At Norton Healthcare, we believe in providing you with the care you want and the care you may need for your birth. We are here to support you in creating the birth plan you envision for yourself.

Why Choose Norton Healthcare for a Natural Birth?

• Certified nurse midwives (CNMs) and OB/GYNs are dedicated to helping you create the natural birth plan you want.
• Natural pain management options, such as a labor tub, are available.
• We welcome the use of doulas during labor and delivery.
• For women who have had a cesarean section and are considering vaginal delivery, VBAC (vaginal birth after C-section) services are available.
• Certified lactation consultants are available to provide breastfeeding support.

Pain Management Possibilities

Labor tubs. We welcome the use of labor tubs at Norton Healthcare. Laboring in warm water may lower stress, blood pressure and pain. It may help mothers relax more during and between contractions and might shorten labor.

Nitrous oxide. In the event you opt for additional pain relief during labor, nitrous oxide is an analgesia, not anesthesia. That means it can reduce pain but does not cause sedation. This alternative pain medication is safe and relatively simple to use, offering pain relief and decreased anxiety. You may use nitrous oxide while in a labor tub.

We Are Prepared

While you may envision and plan for a natural birth, you also want to be prepared for any complications. If the need arises, our team of experienced specialists spring into action to provide the care you didn’t plan for, but the care you need.

You may not plan for it, but we’re prepared with:

• Neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) at Norton Women’s & Children’s Hospital and Norton Children’s Hospital (which has the highest available rating — Level IV)
• Maternal-fetal medicine specialists who provide specialized care for complications associated with multiple births, premature labor, maternal hypertension, diabetes and other issues related to baby or mom.
• 24-hour on-site neonatologists for babies who need advanced medical care
• The region’s only anesthesiologists dedicated exclusively to obstetrics

What to Expect from Norton Women’s Care

More mothers in Louisville and Southern Indiana choose to deliver their babies at Norton Hospital or Norton Women’s & Children’s Hospital than with any other hospital system in the area.

We deliver more than 8,000 babies a year. We’re close to you with more than 90 providers at more than 25 locations around Louisville and Southern Indiana. Choosing Norton Women’s Care gives you many options for how delivery day could go — all with the confidence of knowing that our obstetrics and pediatric specialists are there to help. With Norton Women’s Care, you’ll find:

• The birth experience you want: You can choose natural childbirth, a midwife, labor tub, nitrous oxide and other birthing options. We’ll recommend a C-section (cesarean section) or induced labor only if it’s medically necessary.
• Preparation: Our specialists offer the support you need, including free Lamaze and other childbirth classes, new parent classes, breastfeeding support, child safety classes and more.
• Confidence and quality in care: Norton Women’s Care has been recognized as High Performing — the highest rating available — for maternity care with fewer complications and C-sections, plus breastfeeding support and other benefits.
• We offer the highest-level (Level IV) neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in Louisville and Southern Indiana at Norton Children’s Hospital, and a sophisticated Level III NICU at Norton Women’s & Children’s Hospital.
• Around-the-clock OB/GYN care is available at Norton Hospital and Norton Women’s & Children’s Hospital emergency departments.
• Our board-certified maternal-fetal medicine specialists  can help guide you through a high-risk pregnancy, from treating preexisting diabetes in the pregnant patient to a fetal echocardiogram to diagnose a congenital heart condition before a baby is born.
• Medicare, Medicaid and most major commercial insurance plans are accepted.
• Convenient access to your medical record: Communicate with your health care provider, get lab results, renew prescriptions and more through your free Norton MyChart account.