Maternity | Bermuda Hospitals Board
1st Floor, General Wing, KEMH
Visiting hours 12pm to 2pm and 4pm to 8pm
Fathers 8am to 8pm
Tel: (441) 239-1459 (labour and delivery rooms)
Click here to read the full Maternity Unit Guidelines
KEMH makes every effort to provide a comforting, family-centered environment for the birth of your baby – an environment that welcomes your loved ones to be as much a part of this miracle as you choose.
Our highly trained staff will be available to assist you every step of the way, from labour through delivery, postpartum care for you and your baby, and instructions to put you and your family at ease when it’s time to take your new treasure home. All maternity nurses are both registered nurses and registered nurse midwives.
Think it’s time? If you think you are in labour, please call 239-2016 before you leave home, to let us know you are on your way.
Have these items packed and ready to grab and go:
- Toiletries: soap, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, tissues and any beauty items you just can’t stand to be without
- Personal: Breast pads and sanitary pads
- Clothing: For you: a minimum of two nursing bras for breastfeeding, old comfortable underpants, loose, comfortable nightdresses, street clothing to wear home, slippers, a dressing gown and a shower cap (if you use one). For baby: sleepers, vests, socks, receiving blankets and stocking caps.
- Entertainment: a cell phone or mobile device with headphones is fine.
- Medicine: Prescribed medication only.
When you arrive, check in at the Admitting Desk in the Emergency Department of the Acute Care Wing where the clerk will take your information, then proceed to the Maternity Ward.
Only one support person will be allowed to be with you while you are in the labour and delivery room. Others may wait in the sitting room until you are transferred to your room. Your support person should keep other family members and friends updated so telephone inquiries to the labour room are kept to a minimum.
A hospitality trolley, courtesy of the Hospitals Auxiliary of Bermuda volunteers, comes by daily between 10:30am and 11am. Newspapers, small toiletry items and other goodies are available for purchase.
Valuables should be limited to essential items and a small amount of cash. BHB will not be responsible for loss or damage.
Watch this video for a virtual tour of the Maternity Unit:
Visitors
Visitors are allowed only during the hours posted. No visitors are allowed during quiet time (2pm to 4pm). Visitors must first check with the security person at the door. Doors are locked between 8pm and 8am.
Pilot Programme: Rooming-in guidelines for partners on the postnatal ward
Please discourage visitors from handling your baby and do not allow siblings to visit if they have been exposed to chicken pox or other infectious diseases.
Neonatal Unit
The Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) adjacent to the Maternity Unit cares for babies born before 28 weeks and for other special needs babies. Infants who require care beyond what can be provided in Bermuda are most often referred to the IWK (Izaak Walton Killam) Centre at Grace Maternity Hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Childbirth Classes
Childbirth classes begin on the first Tuesday of each month and last for four weeks. They are open to expectant mothers and one birthing partner (coach) of her choice. Week 1 is an overview of pregnancy and the body changes to expect. Week 2 describes labour and delivery. Week 3 includes pain management and a tour of the hospital’s Maternity facilities. Week 4 concludes the course with a class on breast feeding.
Ultrasound
Ultrasound uses high-frequency sound waves to image parts of the body for diagnostic and interventional procedures. Its use has become routine in imaging the fetus during pregnancy. It has also proved useful in imaging breast tumors that are not clearly imaged using mammography.