Maternity

The Miami Beach Community Health Center is committed to provide the best quality health care for you and your baby. In order to make sure all your prenatal needs are appropriately addressed, we at Miami Beach CHC have an interdisciplinary team working in conjunction to deliver the best care. Our team of professionals work in such areas as: Obstetrics, Gynecology, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, General Medicine, Dentistry, Podiatry, X-rays, Laboratory, Pharmacy, Family Planning, Prenatal Care, and Social Services.

We offer prenatal care
It is important to keep in mind the special needs you as a patient, may have during this special period of your life. For this reason, the Prenatal Department through the Healthy Start Program provide the opportunity of an individual visit where all your specific needs will be addressed through community services.

Services include

• Healthy Start screening for pregnant woman and referrals for infants and children
  • (The goal of Healthy Start is to reduce infant mortality, reduce the number of low weight babies and improve health and developmental outcome.)
• A complete prenatal examination, including blood and preliminary examinations
• Prenatal sonograms
• Prenatal vitamins
• Care coordination services include education and support from staff certified in breastfeeding, parenting, smoking cessation, childbirth, interconceptional care and home visitation.
• Application for benefits like
  • Presumptive Eligibility for Pregnancy Women (which provides temporary Medicaid  coverage to cover the costs of laboratory work and other prenatal care related visits)
  • WIC program (Women, Infants, and Children which provides nutritious foods to supplement the diets of women, infants, and children up to age 5)
  • Transportation (application for monthly bus pass for Medicaid eligible pregnant women and bus tokens) 
  • Emergency Medicaid (which covers the costs of labor and delivery and at the same time starts the process of Medicaid eligibility for the newborn)
• Referrals to other community resources for assistance with food and baby care essentials
• Counseling services at no cost
• Access to individual and/or group nutrition counseling by a registered dietitian at no cost
• Baby Shower events that provide community education, raffles, meeting a pediatrician
• Car Seats for those parents who need this type of assistance

Education and support
We offer free classes as part of the Healthy Start services. For more information, please contact (305) 538-8835 extension 1171 or 1172.

Childbirth Classes
Classes are provided every Wednesday at both clinics at no cost. These classes address information such as changes during pregnancy, the physiology of labor, labor and delivery, and the amazing newborn. The curriculum used for these classes is FOCEP (Florida Outreach Childbirth Education Program).

All patients will receive educational material and additional information (free of charge) in the following areas:

• Back to sleep 
• Magazines: Lamaze, Baby Talk, Parents and others 
• Childbirth information (video and handouts)
• Pre- and Post HIV testing.
• Shaken Baby Syndrome
• Depression

Prenatal care
According to research, having early and regular prenatal health and support services maximizes birth outcomes.  Poverty, immigration status, and lack of knowledge about eligibility for benefits of early and regular prenatal care are deterrents in seeking care.  Community health centers with prenatal health and support services have shown to reduce disparities in care and birth outcomes.

The center offers its services to all residents in Miami-Dade County regardless of immigration status. Our commitment is to you and your baby, and so the center facilitates access to healthcare through education about services, application for Presumptive Eligibility for Pregnant Women - PEPW (Temporary Medicaid) to start prenatal care, a sliding scale if you do not qualify for Medicaid for your prenatal care visits, screening for Emergency Medicaid for the delivery, scheduling the first newborn appointment with one of our pediatricians at the center of your convenience, and your post partum visit as part of continuity of care to you. All information is confidential and in compliance with HIPPA regulations. Together, we can work to make your pregnancy and delivery a happy experience. We look forward to serving you and your family. For more information regarding prenatal care services, please call (305) 538-8835.