When the expectant mother first arrives at the hospital, she most likely will be sent to the
admitting office, or to the prelabor area of L&D. The prelabor area generally comprises
two separate sections: The admitting area and the patient room. The admitting area has a
control desk were the clinical staff can monitor the expectant mother in her room while
gathering patient information from the father necessary to complete the admissions
process. In the prelabor patient rooms, the clinicians assess the expectant mother’s true
condition. The patient might experience contractions of the uterus that are actually “false
labor” because they do not open the cervix as true labor does. At this point, the clinician
can make the decision to admit the patient or to send her home. The physical location of
the prelabor area should be relatively close to the emergency department/admitting office,
or at least within a short walking distance. In most hospitals, the L&D rooms are adjacent
to the prelabor area, because in most cases it would be the location where the expecting
mother will give birth. The patient can bypass the prelabor area when the signs of labor
are clearly present and can go directly to the L&D rooms, where she will go through labor
and will deliver the baby. This area also may have a control desk where a clinical person
will be present to perform the same duties as are performed in the prelabor area. The L&D
area is usually in the center of all of the maternity areas, and the center of the L&D area
is the clinical control area. This area is where most of the clinical staff will record and
document the patient’s progress through the labor process. The clinical staff also will
assess and decide how the labor process is progressing and whether any intervention or
pain medications should be administered.