Visitors and Parking 

Due to COVID-19, the Birth Center is only allowing 1 visitor per Birth Center patient at this time and there is an alternate parking site and entrance for the Birth Center. Please call 360-427-9558 for access.

At Mason Health, we want you to have the healthiest and happiest pregnancy, labor and delivery and postpartum experience possible.

Check out our list of Important Documents at the bottom of the page, including prenatal guides, for additional resources and visit our recommended links for more information:

• MGH Prenatal Guide
• Birth Plan/Preferences Sheet
• Welcome to the MGH Birth Center and What to Pack
• A Partner's Guide to Pregnancy
• COVID-19 and Pregnancy, Labor and Breastfeeding
• How to Tell When Labor Begins

Breastfeeding

• The Benefits of Breastfeeding & the Importance of Colostrum
• Los beneficios de la lactancia y la importancia del calostro
• For Mam (Guatemalan) speakers:

Low C-Section Rate at Mason Health Birth Center Indicates High-Quality, Safe Care

SHELTON, WA – More and more mothers are choosing to give birth at Mason General Hospital, in the care of providers Dr. Andrea Martin, MD, and Dr. Carey Martens, DO, because they know they will receive high-quality, compassionate and individualized care. Over the past few years, rates of Cesarean section surgeries at the Birth Center at Mason General Hospital has continued to drop, as recommended by national standards. This is a positive indicator of the quality of care that patients receive at Mason Health.

In 2019, only 22.67 percent of births at Mason General Hospital were C-sections, compared to 27.45 percent in 2018. The state and national rates for C-sections were 27.9 and 31.9 percent, respectively, in 2018, the most recent year the National Center for Health Statistics collected data. The Department of Health and Human Services recommends that hospitals nationwide reduce C-section rates to 24.7 percent because surgery can raise health risks for the mother. 

“We are ahead of the curve. What this has shown us is, it’s not always better to go to a bigger hospital,” said Dr. Martens. “Sometimes the level of care at a smaller hospital is exactly what a patient wants; they just don’t know it’s available here. Many women come to us and say, ‘I do not want a C-section.’ Well, we don’t want that either unless it is absolutely necessary.”

C-section births are often medically necessary to save the life of an infant and/or mother, and should be considered by providers when needed. The procedure is major surgery, so C-sections do raise the risk of complications, including infection, reaction to anesthesia and increased bleeding and injury. Patients also face longer recovery times, higher costs and an increased chance of needing a C-section in a later pregnancy. Risks rise with each C-section.

Still, mothers should not feel guilty or ashamed if they do need a C-section, said Dr. Martin.

“Cesareans save lives, so cesareans are recommended for that purpose,” she said. “While we do our best to lower the comorbidities that go along with them, they are one of the most valuable tools we have to save lives. We talk about all options with patients and we don’t force their hands. I think because we care, we are having optimal outcomes.”

Read more HERE.

The Birth Center at MGH sets record

New parents continue to choose Mason General Hospital to welcome their newborns into the world because of the exemplary care they receive from the Hospital’s Birth Center team, which includes Dr. Andrea Martin, MD, and Dr. Carey Martens, DO, and Birth Center Team Manager Kris Gaa, RN, as well as 24 registered nurses and two certified nursing assistants.

In August 2019, the Birth Center set a new record for number of births that took place in one month – Forty newborns took their first breaths at MGH, and the staff welcomed them happily.

Birth Center prioritizes "zero" elective inductions

Full-term pregnancy is 40 weeks. Research demonstrates that overall, babies are more developed and have less health problems if delivered after 39 weeks. Mason Health participates in a national initiative to reduce the number of elective deliveries or inductions of newborn babies before 39 weeks. 

Birth Center Manager Kris Gaa has worked for 18 years in the Birth Center, first as a nurse and now six years as manager. She explains why patients continue to choose Mason Health to deliver in the Frequently Asked Questions below: