Our Services

The Center for Fetal and Maternal Health provides comprehensive and collaborative care for fetuses with complex problems. We prepare you for delivery and the care your baby will need immediately after delivery and beyond. The type of care, where it’s provided, and when are personalized to each fetus’s unique situation.
 

Fetal Imaging and Diagnostic Services

Dr. Richard Barth and Dr. Susan Hintz review a patient's radiology images.

Understanding the fetal diagnosis is critically important in making the right management plan for you and your baby. The Center for Fetal and Maternal Health team will select evaluations to clarify the diagnosis based on your baby’s needs. These may include:

• Level 2 ultrasound
• Fetal echocardiogram
• Fetal MRI

Other diagnostic tests may be offered through our Perinatal Diagnostic Centers, including amniocentesis, fetal blood sampling, or other special genetic testing.
 
Once tests have clarified your baby’s diagnosis, you will meet with Center for Fetal and Maternal Health team members. They will:

1. Review and explain their findings
2. Discuss treatment options
3. Answer your questions
4. Make sure you have the information you need to make the best decision for your family

Learn more about the fetal conditions we manage and treatments we offer.
 

Multidisciplinary Care Planning

Throughout your pregnancy, the Center for Fetal and Maternal Health team holds regular fetal case conferences where medical and surgical subspecialists come together to:

• Review your diagnostic test findings
• Discuss your individual needs
• Discuss the most recent research and outcomes in the medical literature for similar cases
• Develop the best care plan for you and your baby

Understanding and Support

Highly trained social workers and genetic counselors are important members of our team. They can:

• Help you understand your baby’s condition and the hospital experience
• Provide emotional support
• Connect you with local resources, including housing

Ongoing Care and Delivery

During pregnancy. Many expectant mothers continue to receive care throughout pregnancy from their own obstetrician. We can work with your obstetrician to arrange ongoing advanced ultrasound imaging and other expert input at one of our Perinatal Diagnostic Centers throughout the Bay Area.
 
Your baby’s delivery. We will likely recommend you deliver at a hospital closer to home if your baby will not require specialty care immediately after birth. Your baby will then visit a Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital outpatient clinic some time after birth. The same medical or surgical subspecialists you meet during your pregnancy will see your baby in clinic.
 
We will likely recommend you deliver your baby at Packard Children’s Hospital if your baby will require specialty care immediately after birth. Our team will help you and your family prepare for your baby’s arrival. You will:

• Have at least one appointment with a maternal-fetal medicine (high-risk obstetrics) physician to create a delivery plan
• Tour Labor and Delivery and the nurseries 
• Discuss with our team what your baby will need in the delivery room and after birth, and who will provide that care

In all cases, we will:

• Communicate with your doctor to make sure the best plan is in place for you and your baby
• Provide compassion and support for you and your family

<< Center for Fetal and Maternal Health Overview

Fetal Conditions and Treatments >>