Thanks everyone. Going to see Dr. Yousry tomorrow. Hopefully he stands up to all the praises he has gotten here.

I'm expecting my first in March and am planning to delivery at Jersey City Medical Center. We went to the "baby fair" a few months ago and toured the maternity ward, which was newly renovated and we were sufficiently impressed. The only negative is that their C-section rate is around 50% but they pointed out that this is on par with statewide C-section rates which is true.

My midwife, Teresa Brennan-Turi, is in the same practice with Dr. Yousry mentioned by another poster and we are hoping that her philosophy allows us to have a natural birth. I know that JCMC has new hydrotherapy tubs for use during labor and Teresa Turi has doppler fetal monitors for use in water as well as other tools that will aid in a natural birth.

Several members of the birth and baby community in JC have told me that JCMC has made great efforts to improve their maternity services including the WHO baby friendly initiative mentioned by the other poster. All babies "room in," you are assigned one nurse for the length of his/her shift and they do everything directly after birth to make breastfeeding a success.

We are also comforted by the fact that there is a NICU there and JCMC is a level 4 trauma center (I think that's the term). In other words, if you birthed at Hoboken and something went seriously wrong, they would transfer you to JCMC.

And, finally, I personally don't want the stress of getting caught in traffic on 1/9 or Route 3 during labor so I'm really glad there's such a great hospital so close. Needless to say, I still haven't delivered there so this info is just based on my research not on personal experience, FWIW.

I also highly recommend Hackensack. I had my first daughter
at Roosevelt and although my obgyn was excellent, the hospital
experience was not. My new doctor is also at Hackensack, so
I made the drive frequently. While I agree it is long from
downtown, it wasn't too bad from the heights where I worked
at the time. If you jump on 495 to 95 to 80, it only took me 20
minutes to get there.

Both my sons were born at New York Hospital. Never a problem. Better to find a doctor and hospital you trust.

I have great things to say about Hackensack University Medical Center. It is an incredible hospital, with great staff and an excellent neonatal unit.

Having said that, I wouldn't recommend birthing there if you reside in JC. Even if you own a car, and have it parked at your front door, a drive out to Hackensack UMC will take at least 30 minutes (without traffic) and possibly much more if you encounter traffic and/or detours.

At the time my daughter was born, we resided down the street right on Prospect Avenue, so it was a no-brainer. If we had resided in JC, we probably would have chosen a different hospital.

Does it make sense to find a Doc that is associated with Hackensack medical center, even though I live in Jersey City?

HMC has great reviews for maternity department. I am just worried that when I am actually ready to deliver would it be worth the drive to Hackensack?

My wife delivered our babies in New York Downtown because that's where her ob/gyn practiced (though the ob/gyn actually lives in Jersey City).

After our younger daughter was born she had a low bilirubin count, and we had her treated at JCMC, which was very good.

Ultimately the important things are 1) to be at a place with a neo-natal ICU, just in case, and 2) to be where your doctor can be.

JCMC has top notch facilities. If your doctor has privileges there it's a good place to be.

I second Dr. Yousry.

I had a horrible experience using a doctor in Manhattan and delivering at St. Lukes Roosevelt the first time.

Dr. Yousry really listened to and calmed my fears with the second baby. Yes he is highly regarded by all the staff at JCMC and they will jump at anything he asks for. The hospital was very "Baby Friendly" and pretty much left us alone as we requested. The food was pretty bad but hey Brownstone Diner is right across the street so not a big problem.

As mentioned the wait times for appointments can be long but just ask the staff to tell you which days are best to schedule.

For my pregnancy, I went to the Rubino group in Bayonne, whom I loved. You can actually take the light rail there if you don't drive. I delivered at St. Barnabas in Livingston. I know some folks who delivered at Liberty medical center and had a good report. I am not particularly impressed with either Hoboken or Christ hospital generally, though I have little knowledge of their maternity departments.

When my wife was pregnant with our daughter, she went to Dr. Ahmed Yousry, whose office location is in the building just behind Liberty Medical Center (Wilzig hospital).

I was fortunate enough to go to most of the prenatal appointments, so I got to know him. In short, he was amazing. Ran a bit long on waiting time (honestly, very long wait times), but it was always comforting to see him nonetheless. When things got a little iffy with test results, he didn't hesitate to send my wife to top-notch specialists for consults.

When my wife went into labor early, knowing in advance that a Cesarean would be required, Dr. Yousry arrived to the hospital at 3 am to perform the procedure. My wife recovered beautifully and now has no scar (he is apparently skilled at plastic technique).

He is well-connected to the maternity department at Liberty (all the nurses and attendings seemed to hold him in high regard), which at the time was working to achieve World Health Organization "Baby Friendly" status (I think Yousry was involved in this initiative). They had a lactation consultant available, who was helpful. The nurses were great (friendly and accommodating), although I think it was a bit slow when we were there, so I don't know how things would be when it's busier.


Based on my family's experience, I would recommend Dr. Yousry and Liberty Medical without reservation.

Caveat: It is possible that my glowing story is the exception, not the rule, so YMMV.

Where and whoever you choose, best of luck!

PLease seriously consider making sure whatever hospital you go to has a top NICU. You never know.

Thanks for the info. I will look up the doctors suggested in the post.

I second Brescia/Mig. My specific doctor is Brescia, but I've met with all of them (when pregnant), and they were all great. I delivered at Palisades, and while they had diapers, we were so-so about our experience there. Lovely rooms, but they did the typical trying-to-get-you-to-leave-early BS. They also weren't too sensitive with me before I got the epidural and was writhing in pain, saying stuff like, "didn't you take birthing classes." Not cool.

Ultimately, they handled the labor and delivery great and when our daughter had some minor complications, they handled that very well. So that's the more important stuff anyway. If/when we have a second, I'd probably consider Hoboken/Christ equally as I did Palisades. What is most important to us is that the Brescia/Mig doctors deliver there, so those are the only options right now.

I used Dr. Moon at Brescia and Miggliacio. He is a great doctor. Very good bedside manner. Their office was great at scheduling prenatal visits, giving me info, etc. However, I delievered at Hoboken University and the nursing staff was terrible! I dont think I am a needy patient, but there are some basic things you need when you're in a hospital with a newborn - like diapers, and I was always hunting down nurses. The rooms were nice though. A lot of it was redone because of Sandy. That OBGYN office delivers at Palisades, too, which I have heard is a lot better.

Can you anyone recommend a good hospital with good and caring staff and Updated/newer patient rooms.

Also suggest a good OBGYN in the area? I stay in JC heights near Pershing Field. Planning to have a baby soon I wanted to find a local doctor instead of going to Edison where I use to live.

Any help would be appreciated.