Photo credit: Barry Halkin

Our mission is to provide highly skilled and considerate care for you and your baby, with personalized attention that shows respect for your physical, spiritual, social and cultural needs.

• Our private rooms are designed to provide bonding time. They feature sleeper sofas for family and plenty of space to keep your baby with you.
• Our team includes experienced and compassionate physicians, nurses, clinical care assistants, case managers and breastfeeding consultants.

We are committed to respecting your privacy, managing your pain, answering the call light promptly, providing answers to your questions, and giving you support.

Safety and Security

Employees wear a photo ID with name, title and department. Babies have two ID bracelets that match the number of the parents' bracelet. Staff verifies the ID number on the bracelets to ensure they match upon admission and any time you are separated from your baby.

There is an enhanced infant security system as an added layer of security. Our security officers make frequent rounds on all units as well.

Nursery

When you need time to rest, we will be happy to care for your baby in the nursery.

Newborn Care

A few hours after your baby is born, you will give your newborn their first bath, giving your baby skin-to-skin contact in those first hours of life. When your baby is 24 hours old, a pediatrician will perform a physical and behavioral exam; our nursing staff will assess your baby every eight hours.

All babies are offered the first series of hepatitis B vaccines upon pediatrician request, have a hearing test, and are examined for signs and symptoms of jaundice (yellow color of the skin). After 36 hours of age, a blood test (PKU) will be performed to check metabolism; this test is required by the D.C. government.

Birth Certificates

A birth certificate form is included with your orientation folder. This must be completed and will be collected for the Birth Registrar Specialist to process.