Birth Center Services Written Policies and Procedures

An applicant to add birth center services to its license shall develop, through an interdisciplinary team, written policies and procedures to ensure the safe operation of the birth center prior to submitting an application for approval. A birth center shall implement, and review and revise through an interdisciplinary team as needed but not less than once a year, its written policies and procedures. A birth center shall ensure that all staff, including any temporary staff and volunteers, are trained and determined to be competent as needed for their duties on the policies and procedures developed by the facility. A birth center’s policies shall include at a minimum, but not be limited to: (A) Patient admission criteria including specific information by which a pregnant person’s risk status will be established. (B) Off-hour coverage. (C) Consultation and referral for obstetric and pediatric care. (D) Specific patient transfer criteria. (E) Emergency procedures, including adult and neonatal cardiopulmonary resuscitation. (F) Standards for medication procurement, storage and administration. (G) Protocols for screening newborns for critical congenital heart disease with pulse oximetry or another test approved by the Department in accordance with Department guidelines.