September 14, 2013
CHENNAI: Women in the city who have the money will no more have to give birth in cramped labour wards surrounded by surgical equipment and stark white and green walls.
September 14, 2013
CHENNAI: Women in the city who have the money will no more have to give birth in cramped labour wards surrounded by surgical equipment and stark white and green walls.
They will now be able to deliver babies in a colorfully painted suite complete with rocking chairs, jacuzzi and television. They will also have their husbands stand by and cut the umbilical cord during delivery.
Boutique maternity hospitals, which are a popular option in cities like Bangalore, New Delhi and even Kolkata, are finally coming to Chennai. Healthcare experts say it is a surprise that a city considered the mecca of medicine had to wait for a decade to have luxury birthing suites.
"The Chennai market was initially considered conservative, in terms of spending and accepting new ideas," says Esha Tiwary, chief marketing officer of Cloudnine Care, which established in 2007 in Bangalore. Cloudnine will open its first boutique hospital in T Nagar soon.
Bangalore-based Motherhood India is all set to become the first boutique maternity centre with a labour delivery recovery (LDR) room to launch in Chennai on Saturday. "It will allow a mother to undergo labour, delivery and recovery in the room that she was admitted in," says its executive director Dr Rehan Sayeed.
The centre also provides services like a fetal medicine centre that will study the fetus' genetics, massage services for the mother and baby and even dermatological treatment for weight loss and removal of stretch marks. The aim of such hospitals is to ensure they do not resemble a hospital.
"Hospitals are usually associated with illness but pregnancy is a sign of wellness and joy. Our ambience is designed for happiness," says Tiwary. "We have a special play centre for kids, fun events and to do things like decorating the family car with balloons when they get discharged," says Tiwary.
The boutique experience is expensive. They cost between 65,000 and 82,500 or more. But mothers and families are happy. "I do not mind spending a few thousands more for such a luxurious experience for an important event that is likely to happen only once or twice in my life," says Anjana A. The resident of TTK Road who is five months pregnant plans to enroll in a boutique hospital soon.
Courtesy: TNN
