Mount Alvernia Maternity Tour

We went for the Mount Alvernia Maternity Tour the same day we had our obgyn appointment. The hospital is just a short drive from the clinic. And we had a bit of time to shop at Junction 8.

The maternity tour is scheduled at 2.30 pm on weekdays.
I was eager to leave Junction 8 by 1.45 pm because I was afraid that
- we will get lost somehow,
- we will not find a parking space, and
- whatever else that can go wrong will probably go wrong.
You know, Murphy's Law?

We arrived at Mount Alvernia a couple of minutes past 2pm.
It was exactly like what I read in the forums - the parking situation is really quite bad.
The carpark is undergoing upgrading works and it is really dusty.
We later found out that it will be done in the first quarter of 2014.
It wan't exactly ideal for Ms. Preggers to be walking through the dust so the very concerned hubby dropped me off at the main lobby. Because he is so sweet, he managed to find a lot in the dark, dusty, "under-construction" carpark pretty quickly.


First impression of Mount Alvernia
It felt very warm and welcoming! And I do appreciate that a lot.
I was guided to the Patient Liaison Centre by a cheerful staff. 

The tour begins...
Each of the couple received a goodie bag which consists of some brochures on the hospital, vouchers, a magazine and some samples.

A short briefing was done in the Centre. That was when I wished I had brought along a pen instead of the camera. I didn't get to take any photos in the end but I could certainly do with some notes.

We went through maternity packages available in Mount Alvernia (Nightgowns are not provided. Need to get me some pjs!) as well as a brief introduction of the Alvernia Ladies Card.

We were then guided to Block A, Level 3, an entire level dedicated to mommies and babies.
Daddies are able to bring the mommies to the delivery suites before proceeding with the admission.
We learnt that if the Daddies are driving, they can basically leave the car for valet parking, or if it's night and no valet parking is available, chuck the car and park it later. Mommies are the priority!

Delivery Suites
All the delivery suites were occupied on the day of the tour.
We had to go to the 'spare delivery suite' which has amenities like the television, arm chair, Wi-Fi (ah-ha!) etc. The only difference is that the spare suite does not come with an attached bathroom.

What I learnt: 
- The various pain relief options (music, aromatherapy, hydrotherapy at $800 per soak..)
- Inform the nurses if we would like immediate skin-to-skin contact with the baby.
- The baby will be passed to Mommy one hour after birth for breastfeeding.

I have to confess.
I freaked out a little when we entered the delivery suite and observation rooms.
It didn't help that the entire group walked past a mommy who had just given birth.

Suddenly everything felt so real.
In a couple of months, I will be the one there.

The Wards
We were shown the old wing, and the new.
I can't remember which is which but it didn't really make much of a difference to me.
I was pretty comfortable with both. Though I'll probably like the one without the balconies better.

We were lucky to be able to view most of the rooms.

- Double bedder
Not my first option because I'll want the hubby to be with me. And with double-bedders, baby won't be able room in.

- Single
Pretty good sized to me. I don't really like huge rooms. Baby is allowed to room it.
I'd love that though I'm still not very sure if I'd want that when the time comes. At least there's an option?

- Single Deluxe
Apparently the same size as the single. The only difference is that this has a DVD player a electric kettle

-Super Deluxe
I assume most people will like this. It's a lot more spacious and the sofa bed is longer. 
Better for the husbands staying over. The room feels a little too big though. For some reasons, I don't like huge rooms.

We didn't manage to view the four-bedders and the family suite (which I assume will be really huge)

All the rooms come with a clean, nice-sized bathroom with a standing shower.

Lactation Consultants will come by the wards to visit (working hours) should mommies need help in breastfeeding.

ParentCraft Centre
We ended the tour at the ParentCraft Centre.
This is where mommies and daddies can attend the one hour complimentary class on caring for the baby.
If my memory didn't fail me, classes are conducted on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10am - 11am. See why I need a pen now?

We were given a complimentary drink voucher at the end of the tour.
We ended up having tea at the cafe, with snacks. The food isn't fantastic but I guess we should keep the expectations realistic.


Overall, it was a rather good experience.
The staff we encountered are really friendly. I hope all of them are like that!
Though I'm not exactly impressed with the exterior of the hospitals (as well as the renovation works that's going on), it's the interior and ambience that matters. I must say I'm pretty comfortable at Mount Alvernia.

I think little princess should be delivered in Mount Alvernia after all. :)