Having a baby is a very important event in your life, and we want you to be able to share your joy with family and friends. However, having a large number of people in your hospital room can make it difficult to relax and focus on labor, recovery, and your newborn.

While you are in labor at SMJH, you may designate three primary support people, who will receive special wrist bands allowing them 24/7 access to support you throughout labor and delivery.  At SMJH, doulas are included in this total. 

On our postpartum and women’s services unit, family and friends are welcome to visit unless you tell us otherwise. For the safety of you and our other patients, only one primary support person may stay with you overnight.  If an overnight visitor must leave the hospital after 9:00 PM, they must go through the Emergency Department to regain access. Your visitors must check in at the front desk of our secure unit, where a member of our team will contact you in your hospital room to verify that you are currently ready for visitors. Visitors under 12 must be supervised at all times by an adult other than the patient.  Children whose behavior is disruptive will be asked to leave.

In our Special Care Nursery, parents receive special wrist bands allowing them 24/7 access to support their newborn. Siblings of the newborn patient are permitted to visit in our Special Care Nursery.  Siblings must be supervised by a parent/support person at all times.  It is recommended that siblings under the age of 5 limit visitation to 30 minutes.  No more than 4 people may visit at the bedside at a time.

Your stay with us is relatively short, and you need time to rest and recover. In the weeks before your stay with us, consider who is important to have with you while you are in the hospital. You may want to ask that only your closest support persons are with you, and that other family and friends wait until you are home to visit.

All guidelines are subject to change at any time. We appreciate your understanding as we work to keep our patients, visitors, and staff safe.

Last updated October 31, 2023