New Mom Comes Home to Saint Luke’s After Labor Scare at Another Hospital

Keely Bechtel hoped history would repeat itself. She had her first baby at Saint Luke’s South Hospital and planned to do the same with her second. But her obstetrician moved to another area hospital.

She thought her birth experiences would be similar—until she went into early labor and rushed to the other hospital.

“The nurses there made me feel like I was a nuisance,” Keely recalled. Then the fetal heart monitor malfunctioned, failing to show her strong contractions—or the baby’s heartbeat.

“I was crying, thinking what was happening with my body wasn’t showing on the screen,” Keely said. “No one explained what was happening. I didn’t feel safe there.”

Eventually, the staff sent her home.

Attention pleaser

Then, Keely got a vivid reminder of the special care she got while giving birth to daughter Brooke two years earlier at Saint Luke’s South Hospital. Keely’s sister-in-law and best friend, Sarah Hardinger, went into labor. The whole family gathered there for the birth of Sarah’s son, Henry.

“The nurses at Saint Luke’s took better care of me as a visitor than when I was a patient at the other hospital,” Keely said. “They offered us blankets and beverages and made sure we were comfortable, too.”

Then Keely met her sister-in-law’s obstetrician, Peter Caruso, M.D., whose warmth and humor put her at ease. At more than eight months pregnant, Keely asked if he would deliver her baby so she could return to Saint Luke’s.

Only about 1 in 20 women switch doctors so late in pregnancy, and it’s usually because of a move or doctor’s departure, according to Dr. Caruso. “No problem” was his response. Three weeks later, Keely went into labor—again. The birth went smoothly and quickly. She was delighted to stay in one room for the labor, delivery, and recovery with her new son, Reed.

“Parents like Saint Luke’s South Hospital because we offer more personalized care,” Dr. Caruso said. The high nurse-to-patient ratio allows more time to spend interacting with moms and their families.

High-touch care

Keely marveled that each nurse seemed to have a particular expertise.

“When my baby was slow to nurse, one came in to show me some breastfeeding tricks,” Keely said. “Another one was an expert swaddler. Our baby looked like a burrito.”

Every time a nurse left the room, Keely and her husband would say, “Oh, you’re so great. Don’t leave us.” Then another would come with new wisdom to share.

For baby No. 3, Keely is committed to staying in her safe place: Saint Luke’s.