Taking the hospital tour is considered to be a right of passage for expectant parents choosing to birth in the hospital. They gather together in a group, a bit nervous, a bit excited, following the tour guide, quietly tiptoeing through the labor and delivery unit, hearing and seeing women in labor, peeking into empty rooms, learning where to park and finding out about the amenities that the facility has to offer. They smile slightly to themselves and begin to imagine themselves birthing in one of these very rooms in the not too distant future.

A few families may ask questions, inquiring about policies and what they are "allowed" to do once admitted. In fact, some of these questions may come up in your classes or you may hear stories about what the students learned on their various tours.

Lamaze International is offering a Parent Webinar: Getting the Most out of Your Hospital Tour next Wednesday, April 24th. at 12 PM EST. This one hour webinar is being presented by Allison Walsh, IBCLC, LCCE. This engaging learning opportunity can help parents to prepare for their tour, ask questions that count and really understand what they need to do to have an active, upright birth within the hospital setting.

http://flic.kr/p/6s15sQ

I encourage childbirth educators to inform their students about this webinar opportunity and suggest your CBE families register now. The webinar will be made available in recorded form in a timely fashion after the live presentation is completed. As an educator, I see lots of opportunities to bring this webinar into your classroom for discussion, watch snippets of it throughout your series, or ask your students to do a fun role play, incorporating what they learned from the webinar.

Some CBEs and L&D nurses may be the tour guide at the hospital, and this webinar can help them to offer an effective and evidence based tour that thoroughly meets the need of participants.

Tweet about this opportunity, post it on Facebook and share with students and your community of pregnant families, encouraging them to register now! By attending this free webinar, families will become more informed maternity care consumers and in a better position to "Push for Their Baby."

The Lamaze Parent blog, Giving Birth With Confidence highlighted this webinar in a comprehensive blog post yesterday that you may also want to share with your families.

To learn more about the Parent Webinar: "Getting the Most out of Your Hospital Tour" and to register, please click here. See you at the webinar!

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