The Stork's Landing Maternity Center

We strive to provide patient- and family-centered care during your entire stay with us.

Our maternity center includes:

• Home-like postpartum rooms with private showers.
• Decorative labor delivery and recovery suites with private Jacuzzi baths.
• A well-baby nursery for healthy newborn babies.

Our labor/delivery/postpartum team includes:

• Board-certified obstetricians/gynecologists, and anesthesiologists for epidural anesthesia 24 hours a day.
• Labor/delivery/recovery/postpartum and nursery registered CPR-certified nurses
• Lactation consultants
• Neonatal nurse practitioners with neonatologist supervision

Vaginal Birth Support

The nursing staff is trained to support vaginal births and use different approaches to help you have the delivery you desire while addressing your medical needs. Some of these approaches include:

• Limiting interventions during labor and birth.
• Encouraging frequent movement and position changes.
• Offering intermittent monitoring for low-risk births and wireless fetal monitoring to allow you to move more freely.
• Use of peanut balls and birthing balls to help speed up labor.
• Aromatherapy to help enhance your delivery experience. Essential oils can improve energy, help you cope with labor pain, decrease stress and anxiety, and relieve nausea and headaches.

Nitrous Oxide for Labor Pain Management
Ask your healthcare provider about this alternative pain management option to help manage your labor pain. Nitrous oxide gives you more control of your pain management, takes effect in minutes and wears off quickly. It is supported as a safe and effective form of pain control by national organizations, including American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses, and American College of Nurse Midwives.

We encourage you to work alongside your healthcare team to create a birth plan for you and your family.

Support for Cesarean Births

Should a C-section be part of your plan or become necessary, we support family-centered Cesarean births in our dedicated OR.

We offer gentle Cesarean sections by providing clear drapes for the moment of birth and initiate skin-to-skin and breastfeeding in the operating room. Your healthy baby stays with you in the operating room and through your recovery, so you are not separated from your baby, unless desired or medically necessary.

After Delivery

The Stork’s Landing staff is trained to help you start bonding with your baby immediately. We offer:

Rooming In
We encourage your baby to stay in the room with you as much as possible. Rooming in helps you to learn your baby's feeding cues and sleep/wake cycles, as well as bond with your baby. Rooming in also will improve your comfort level in caring for and feeding your newborn once you go home.

Skin-to-skin Contact
Every baby, regardless of how they are fed – breast or bottle – should stay skin-to-skin for the first hours after birth, and as much as possible after that. Skin-to-skin has been proven to aid in keeping your baby's temperature and blood sugar levels normal, as well as to decrease fussiness and improve feeding success.

Breastfeeding Support
A lactation consultant will visit you daily to offer any assistance you may need with breastfeeding. The nursing staff is also knowledgeable and experienced in assisting with breastfeeding and can answer questions or concerns you may have.

You may also choose to use pasteurized human milk for infant feeding supplementation if necessary. Pasteurized human milk is carefully screened, pasteurized and tested and is safe to feed your baby. Pasteurized human milk offers the same benefits of mother's milk by providing nutrients your baby needs while being easy to digest.

Delayed Bathing
Delaying bathing until 12 hours of life has been shown to improve temperature stability and feeding success. Baths can now be done in your postpartum room, allowing for the whole family to be involved. Your baby will be placed skin-to-skin with you to rewarm after his or her bath.

Nap Time
Daily from 2:00 am to 4:00 am and 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm This is a time for you to get a well-deserved break from the hustle and bustle of the hospital. You may ask visitors to refrain from visiting during this time. You should experience little to no interruptions, unless medically indicated, so that you can catch up on some rest and bond with your new family.

Hello Baby Celebration Meal
This special meal offers families a variety of menu options to help celebrate the arrival of your newborn. 

Video Tours and Prenatal Classes

Check out our labor and delivery unit in this video or sign up for a free tour of the Stork's Landing Maternity Center.

We also encourage you to sign up for our online prenatal classes and recommend you complete them by 36 to 37 weeks gestation. We offer the following classes:

• Childbirth Education
• Infant Care
• Infant/Child CPR
• Breastfeeding

Prices, dates and times are subject to change. Registration for all classes is required.

Duke Ob/Gyn Care Coach

Ob/Gyn Care Coach was designed by Duke Health obstetricians and gynecologists to help guide you through pregnancy, postpartum, and gynecological surgery. In the portal, you will find links to resources, videos, and other educational materials.