• Font Size
  A A A
• |
• Employers
• |
• Physicians
• |
• Contact Us

Pregnancy and Birthing

Having a baby is one of the most wonderful, remarkable events in life - for you and those you love. At Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare, we are well-known in the community for our exceptional mother/baby care from pregnancy and delivery to postpartum and newborn care.

Sharing photos of your newborn is easy than ever! Visit your hospital's Web Nursery:
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare – All Saints
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare - Elmbrook Memorial
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare - St. Francis
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare - St. Joseph

Family-Centered Maternity Care

We offer family-centered maternity care, a truly unique approach to childbirth that is based on the belief that having a baby is a natural, healthy, joyful experience to be shared by the whole family.

You can find more information at our online Pregnancy Health Center as well as on each Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare Family Birth Center, use the links below.
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare - All Saints
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare - Elmbrook Memorial
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare - St. Francis
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare - St. Joseph

Breastfeeding can be one of life’s most beautiful experiences. In addition to providing nutrition for your baby, it can be a wonderful way for you and your child to bond. Wheaton Franciscan Centers for Women and Children support and encourage breastfeeding and offer a variety of services for this special time.

All the care and support you need
Experienced and knowledgeable members of our breastfeeding team provide comprehensive education and support before and after your baby’s birth. In addition to sharing techniques and answering your questions, we take every measure to ensure that your breastfeeding experience is successful.

Our breastfeeding centers
Conveniently located within Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare hospitals, our breastfeeding centers offer a wide range of resources for breastfeeding mothers, their infants, and families.

Breastfeeding services are available at:

Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare–All Saints
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare–Elmbrook Memorial
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare–St. Francis
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare–St. Joseph

Baby Friendly Designation
Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare hospitals are dedicated to providing baby friendly environments and do so in many ways.

As it relates to breastfeeding, The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative is a global program sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to encourage and recognize hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for breastfeeding mothers and families. Hospitals may apply for this designation, and two of Wheaton Franciscan hospitals have done so.

Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare –Elmbrook Memorial and St. Francis have specific “Baby Friendly Hospital” designations, awarded after undergoing an extensive accreditation process.
They are two of only five hospitals in Wisconsin and fewer than 75 in the United States with this distinction.

Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI)
The BFHI promotes, protects and supports breastfeeding through the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding for Hospitals, as outlined by United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)/World Health Organization (WHO). The steps for the United States are:

1. Maintain a written breastfeeding policy that is routinely communicated to all health care staff.
2. Train all health care staff in skills necessary to implement this policy
3. Inform all pregnant women about the benefits and management of breastfeeding.
4. Help mothers initiate breastfeeding within one hour of birth
5. Show mothers how to breastfeed and how to maintain lactation, even if they are separated from their infants.
6. Give infants no food or drink other than breastmilk, unless medically indicated.
7. Practice “rooming in” – allows mothers and infants to remain together 24 hours a day.
   
8. Encourage unrestricted breastfeeding.
   
9. Give no pacifiers or artificial nipples to breastfeeding infants.
   
10. Foster the establishment of breastfeeding support groups and refer mothers to them on discharge from the hospital or clinic.

For more information about our pregnancy services, please call us at 1-888-9-WHEATON. In Racine, call 262-687-3270.

To find an Obstetrician/Gynecologist, click here