Brockton Hospital named top maternity hospital in the nation - MetroWest Daily News

This is the first time the hospital has been included on Newsweek's list of best maternity hospitals

BROCKTON — It was a week past the due date for her first child, so Kira Johnson was scheduled to be induced for labor. 

The Franklin resident, who works at Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital, was scheduled to come to the hospital the afternoon of April 24. Johnson started feeling pains in her back which were later determined to be contractions. By the time she arrived, Johnson was in labor. By the end of the day her daughter Taya was born.

"It all happened all at once," Johnson recalled about her delivery. "I think Taya knew we were getting her out one way or another." 

When she and her husband, Todd, decide to have more children, Johnson plans to return to the hospital because of the care she received there. 

Brockton Hospital was named one of the top maternity care hospitals by Newsweek, the first time it has received the recognition, said Dr. Keith Merlin, chief of obstetrics and gynecology at the hospital.

"It's humbling," he said. "It's a recognition of a team approach that has been working very hard to provide the best and safest care not only locally, but nationally." 

Only six other hospitals in Massachusetts made Newsweek's list. 

Brockton Hospital's place on the list is based on its excellence in maternity care, including having low rates of cesareans and early elective deliveries and following safety protocols.

Merlin said Brockton Hospital is the only community hospital in the area with its own simulation training program, which allows doctors, midwives, pediatricians, anesthesiologists go through various birth scenarios.

"Go forbid that if we see those sort of emergencies, we are ready to handle them," he said.

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During her pregnancy, Johnson saw Dr. Tutasi Waters and liked that she had an ultrasound machine on hand for every appointment.

"It was so nice to see (Taya) during each appointment," Johnson said, which helped her see her daughter grow. She also found hearing Taya's heartbeat reassuring. 

For her delivery, Johnson said the staff was supportive, like when they cheered her on while she pushed and when she needed help breastfeeding. They helped her and her husband, Todd, feel comfortable going home. 

Another way the hospital stands out for its maternity care is through its free baby photo shoots, which is a sendoff gift for all families. Brockton Hospital staff take the pictures, prints and frames one and gives other shots to the family on a CD. 

Johnson thought the photos taken of Taya turned out nicely, even though she and her husband didn't come prepared with a nice outfit for the newborn to wear. 

Taya was one of nearly 500 babies delivered at Brockton Hospital during the coronavirus pandemic. 

"Babies don't stop coming because of the pandemic," said Heather Souza, nurse manager of maternal child health and pediatrics at Brockton Hospital. "We stayed open for business. We did it the right way." 

The maternity department made some changes to protect patients, their babies and staff.

Some appointments were done by telehealth, Merlin said, but the unit saw most pregnant patients and had deliveries done in the same way.

The maternity department changed its visitor policy, allowing only one person in for a few months, Souza said. If the person in the unit was COVID-19 positive, they couldn't have a support person come, which was meant to reduce risk. 

Staff also held drills for how to handle a patient with the coronavirus and followed routines to ensure safety, she said. The maternity unit prepared to care for pregnant patients with COVID-19 by setting up a negative pressure room, Merlin said. 

At the height of the pandemic in Massachusetts and the high number of cases in Brockton, the hospital didn't see high rates of COVID-19 among the pregnant population, he said. 

"Pregnant women were more fastidious in exercising mask wearing and handwashing, probably because they wanted to protect themselves and their babies," Merlin said. "We were seeing less incidents of infection because they were so vigilant." 

Johnson was among pregnant patients who took precautions. She began working from home in mid-March. 

Having both herself and her husband being home has been valuable in the first few months of Taya's life, Johnson said. 

"I think it was a good time to have a baby (during the pandemic) and being quarantined with her and having my husband home all the time," she said. "We found the light in the situation."

Johnson said she and her husband work well together by taking turns to feed and care for their daughter. He is more of a night person and will stay up with Taya while Kira said she is more of a morning person and will get up with her then. 

After Taya turned two months and received her immunization shots, her parents started to let people visit them outside and see her from a distance. Only her grandparents have been allowed to hold her.

Johnson imagined when she would tell her daughter about being born during a global pandemic. 

"When she grows up, she's never going to hear the end of it," she said. 

Staff writer Mina Corpuz can be reached at mcorpuz@enterprisenews.com. Follow her on Twitter @mlcorpuz

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