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To schedule an appointment, call 816-404-BABY
Your child's birth is one of the most important and exciting days of your life. The professionals at University Health can handle the most complex deliveries—and the easy ones, too. We offer the most advanced expertise in high-risk pregnancy, maternal fetal medicine, and perinatal diagnostics, making us uniquely qualified to care for you and your baby. At University Health Truman Medical Center (UH TMC), our patients have immediate access to the Level IV NICU at Children's Mercy Hospital (CMH) via an indoor bridge between the two hospitals. This affiliation creates the gold standard in critical care when seconds count. UH TMC is the only maternity hospital in the Kansas City metro area that has this physical connection to CMH.
University Health Women's Care Lakewood Family Birthplace offers a Level II NICU, managed by CMH physicians and nurse practitioners.
Reviewed 12/15/2022
Pregnancy: How baby develops
MONTH 1
The heart and lungs begin to form. Your baby is just a tiny embryo at this stage.
MONTH 2
All the baby's major body organs are beginning to develop. The ears, fingers and toes are also beginning to form.
At the six-week mark, you may be able to hear the baby's heartbeat during an ultrasound. By the end of the second month, the baby is about an inch long.
MONTH 3
Soft nails are beginning to form on the fingers and toes. Tiny buds have appeared that will later become baby teeth.
By the end of this month, the baby is about 3 inches long and weighs about an ounce.
MONTH 4
The baby moves, kicks, swallows and can hear.
By the end of the fourth month, the baby is around 6 inches long and weighs about 4 ounces.
MONTH 5
The baby now sleeps and wakes at regular intervals, and his or her skin is covered with fine, soft hair.
At the end of this month, the baby is about 10 inches long and weighs around 1 pound.
MONTH 6
At this stage, the lungs still aren't ready for life outside the womb.
By the end of the sixth month, the baby is about 12 inches long.
MONTH 7
Responsive to light and sound, the baby can now open and close his or her eyes. Moms may notice a lot of activity in the womb as the baby kicks and stretches.
MONTH 8
Your baby is gaining weight rapidly.
By the end of the eighth month, the baby is about 14 to 18 inches long and weighs around 4 to 5 pounds.
MONTH 9
Halfway through the month your baby will be full-term. To get ready for birth, the baby will usually turn head down and move down into the pelvic area.
HOW WILL YOU KNOW YOU'RE IN LABOR?
Sources: American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; American Pregnancy Association; Office on Women's Health
Sources
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. "How Your Fetus Grows During Pregnancy." https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/how-your-fetus-grows-during-pregnancy?utm_source=redirect&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=otn.
- American Pregnancy Association. "Fetal Development – How to Calculate Gestational Age." https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/while-pregnant/fetal-development/.
- American Pregnancy Association. "Second Trimester: Fetal Development." https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/pregnancy-health-wellness/second-trimester/.
- American Pregnancy Association. "Third Trimester of Pregnancy: Fetal Development." https://americanpregnancy.org/healthy-pregnancy/pregnancy-health-wellness/third-trimester/.
- Office on Women's Health. "Stages of Pregnancy." https://www.womenshealth.gov/pregnancy/youre-pregnant-now-what/stages-pregnancy.
Tour our birthing centers
In person tours are being held by appointment only.
For University Health Truman Medical Center, please call 816-404-BABY.
For University Health Lakewood Medical Center, please call 816-404-8281.
Tour all that’s new inside The Birthplace at University Health Women’s Care.
University Health Women's Care Lakewood Family Birthplace
The comfort and safety of you and your infant are our utmost concern at University Health Women's Care The Birthplace. We invite you to learn more about our expertise and services.
Comfortable birthing suites. Our birthing suites include a private bathroom, specially designed birthing beds and couches that change into a bed for a guest.
Additional features include:
- Wireless fetal monitor telemetry to allow mom to walk during labor.
- Birthing balls to relieve discomfort during pregnancy and labor.
- Special front-open gowns, designed to provide full coverage and comfort to mom.
- Epidural pain management that's available 24/7.
High-risk pregnancy care and Level III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). University Health Women's Care The Birthplace is a leader in high-risk pregnancy care. Our Level III NICU is available for premature infants or babies with special needs.
Our staff also provides care to mothers who deliver at Children's Mercy Hospital for emergency and critical care issues. A bridge connects the two facilities for easy access between the hospitals.
University Health Women's Care The Birthplace team. At University Health Women's Care The Birthplace highly skilled OB/GYN physicians with extensive training in pregnancy provide care for you and your baby.
Our physicians specialize in high-risk pregnancy care, and all deliveries at University Health Women's Care The Birthplace are attended by a NICU nurse.
Find a maternity care provider.
Visiting hours are daily from 6 am to 8:30 pm. To keep you and your baby healthy, we encourage visitors who are not well to delay their visit. And, to help you continue to feel your best, we recommend visits be limited to 30 minutes to allow for as much rest as possible. Currently, due to COVID-19 this policy varies. Please see COVID-19 specific visiting hours.
Your peace of mind and comfort are as important to us as they are to you. We invite you to learn more about how we care for you and your baby at the University Health Women's Care Lakewood Family Birthplace.
Labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum (LDRP) suites. At University Health Women's Care Lakewood Family Birthplace you'll remain in the same private birthing suite for your entire stay.
New moms may opt to use the traditional delivery bed throughout their stay or move to a queen-sized Murphy bed in the same room for a more homelike environment.
Each of our suites has a flat-screen TV and Wi-Fi.
Additional features include:
- Wireless fetal monitor telemetry to allow mom to walk during labor.
- Birthing balls to relieve discomfort during pregnancy and labor.
- Special front-open gowns, designed to provide full coverage and comfort to mom.
- Epidural pain management that's available 24/7.
- A spa with a jetted tub.
Level II NICU. The NICU at University Health Women's Care Lakewood Family Birthplace can care for premature babies, as well as babies who have come full term and have health issues. For more serious complications or known high-risk implications, your doctor will direct you or make arrangements.
The University Health Women's Care Lakewood Family Birthplace team. Our expert OB/GYNs, board-certified family medicine physicians and board-certified nurse midwives are committed to making your experience personal and safe.
To make your experience even easier, we pair you with an OB patient navigator to ensure you book the proper appointments and have all the information you need going into delivery day.
Find a maternity care provider.
Visiting hours. Visitors are welcome daily from 10 am to 8:30 pm. We encourage your family to be involved in your delivery experience. We believe significant others are important, and they are welcome to visit at any time. We also offer generous visiting hours for siblings, extended family and friends after your baby is born. Currently, due to Covid-19 this policy varies. Please see Covid-19 specific visiting hours.
Download Safe Medications During Pregnancy PDF
Our Baby Friendly accreditation
Both UH Women's Care The Birthplace and UH Women's Care Lakewood Family Birthplace are accredited as Baby Friendly by the World Health Organization. To be accredited as Baby Friendly, a hospital must promote and educate new moms on the benefits of breastfeeding.
Baby-Friendly practices are designed to strengthen mother-baby bonding and to protect, promote and support breastfeeding in the first few days of a new baby’s life. Baby-Friendly designation means that a maternity facility has successfully implemented the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, which include providing appropriate education to enable families to make informed decisions about infant feeding, encouraging mothers to hold their babies skin-to-skin immediately following birth, and offering expert lactation support throughout and beyond the hospital stay.
We have a variety of complimentary breastfeeding services available before and after you give birth.
Learn more about our lactation consultant services.
Childbirth and new parent classes
Want more pregnancy information? View our childbirth, breastfeeding and new parent classes.
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Having a baby can be tough, but University Health doctors are making the journey just a little easier for moms-to-be! Check out the EleVATE group that's offering a community of support & education for pregnant women. Call 816-804-2170 to learn more about joining the group.
