Birth & Women’s Health Center

I saw Maya for an annual exam today. I was pleased with everything: the cleanliness of the office, the polite and efficient staff, and best of all Maya. She immediately put me at ease with her pleasant demeanor and easy going personality. She was informative and friendly; everything an OB/​GYN should be. She also took her time and made sure she answered all my question. I didn’t feel rushed at all.
I will return for any further exams or needs in the future for pregnancy or not! I will add that I was a little early for my appt (8:20am) and they took me a little early; it worked out perfectly.

I have had the opportunity to work with the midwives, nurses, and administrative staff at the Birth Center well over a dozen times now. I am a birth doula here in Tucson and I have been pleased with the way my clients were treated from the moment they chose the midwives as their providers. The midwives take time with expecting families at each prenatal visit and there’s never a feeling of being rushed out the door. The facility itself is cozy and homey, but still fully stocked and able to offer top-​quality medical care. The midwives are skilled and compassionate. Each room is individually decorated and has tubs that are good size and perfect for laboring (and birthing). The midwife is there from the moment of arrival at the birth center until after birth, and moms are able to have continuity of care throughout the whole process, even in the event of a transfer to the hospital. I cannot say enough good things about the Birth & Women’s Center and look forward to working with them more in the future!

I love the birthing center! We switched from my OB because I wanted to try giving birth without all the pressures if intervention (watch the movie the business of being born). My husband was not thrilled at first about it so we comprised that I would go there but have a hospital birth. Between the appointments with the midwives and the classes he totally changed his mind and was all about having our baby there. I’m so happy we did, the midwives were supportive and once my son was born he was able to just stay with me! Then when we wanted to go home we went home. So different then my friend’s hospital experiences. I will say the answering service is not great for new patients, we had to just drop by over there to set an appointment. Once I was a patient the midwives on call would always call back to answer questions.

My husband and I moved to Tucson from California halfway through my pregnancy. We immediately made an appointment at the Birth Center thinking this was a place where we could happily continue our prenatal care. A number of factors caused us to lose confidence in the practice and ultimately transfer to an OB elsewhere in town. Our reasons for leaving included repeated rudeness/​attitude on the part of reception/​front desk staff, evidence of MAJOR administrative disorganization, midwives who without exception ran quite late for our appointments (at LEAST 45 minutes, if not more), and a general gut feeling that something was lacking in the quality of care. At one of my appointments they forgot to ask me for a urine sample — a vital, routine aspect of any prenatal appointment — and I decided not to say anything about it to see if anyone would catch the oversight. They didn’t — they let me leave my monthly appointment without having checked for protein, glucose, etc. Another time I called with a question about a symptom and the midwife on the phone was extremely rushed and gruff with me – she seemed annoyed that I had called. I was also chastised by someone else for gaining too much weight too quickly when in actuality my weight gain was right on target (and still is) AND I had begun the pregnancy a lightweight at just 110 lbs. I was counseled to «watch my sugar and carbs» by someone who didn’t know anything about my diet or the fact that I am already a very healthy, gluten-​free, organic eater who does not overindulge in refined sugars or white starches. The advice I was receiving was just completely uninformed.
We decided to make an appointment elsewhere and I’m so happy we did. The care we’re receiving now is personal, warm, flexible, and competent. No paperwork mix-​ups, nothing overlooked, and advice that’s correctly tailored to my individual needs as a patient. I’m one week from my due date and I feel very secure with my current provider.
I don’t doubt that others have had great experiences here — some of the staff is obviously kind and well meaning — but as another Unilocaler said, we just wouldn’t feel comfortable trusting these people with the life of our baby.

Well, 5 star update for this place because flat out, they deserve it. Even though we ended up having our son, Milo at TMC, the bulk of the labor was spent here (18 – 19 hours of the 25 hour labor). 95% of that time was spent with Sandra (Sandy), who is an absolute rockstar of a midwife. We couldn’t have done it without her, even at TMC, where she loyally remained with us. She was just so absolutely wonderful.
Leading up to the pregnancy, we had bi-​monthly, then monthly, then weekly, then even bi-​weekly visits here. All visits were professional and courteous. More importantly, they were kind and considerate. We also attended the 5-​week, 5 session classes offered to expectant parents. These were great to have in preparation for the labor, although really, there is nothing that can truly get you ready. Still though, very much worthwhile. Since the birth of our son, we’ve taken advantage of some new-​parent «meetings» where new parents (and children) can meet to discuss items pertinent to raising their children. These events are always moderated by someone affiliated with the Birth Center, so there is professional advice and opinion input into the discussion as well.
I really and simply am so happy that we have this place here in town. Not just during the pregnancy, but afterwards as well.

I had heard such good things about this place so when I found out that I was expecting I called them right away. Over the course of a couple of weeks I left half a dozen messages trying to set up my first prenatal appointment. Someone always answered the phone, took a message and told me that someone else would get back to me to set up the appointment. Not one of my calls was ever returned. I would never dream of putting my life and the life of my baby in their hands.

Words cannot describe how great this place is, and what a blessing the entire staff are! We started going here right when I found out I was pregnant (my sister had both of her sons here, and I knew I wanted a natural birth). It’s really wonderful that you have appointments with all the midwives along the way, so when the time comes, you know who you’re working with and it’s comfortable.
We ended up delivering at TMC due to some minor complications and, even though it wasn’t what I had envisioned, I really respect our midwife (Judy B) for making the decision to go there just in case our son needed extra help.
Having a natural birth was important to me, and we felt so supported all the way from start to finish — don’t know if I could’ve done it without them! Since we had started labor at the birth center and finished at TMC, we got to really experience both… I asked my husband (who was quite skeptical about the birth center from the beginning) which would he choose next time, and we agreed — birth center, no question.
If you are seeking support through your pregnancy, and a wonderful, supportive staff and environment to take this journey, come to the birth center — best decision we ever made!

Tucson you don’t know how lucky you are! Birth centers like this one are few and far between. I am so grateful that I live here when we had our first child so that we could get excellent care from the wonderful midwives and nurses at the El Rio, Birth & Women’s Health Center.
If you are considering it for your pregnancy I fully and highly recommend it! I can’t imagine getting better care anywhere else!

The nurses and midwives take wonderful care of my wife and were especially good with not only the pregnancy, but the delivery as well. I think that if more women went here for regular care, they’d have a hard time going back to their regular OB/​GYN. I got to see how they treated my wife and I was really impressed.