CURRENT PROJECT
Manhattan MaternityWHAT THE PANDEMIC TAUGHT US
While NYC hospitals did all they could to cope and save lives under unimaginable challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic, birthing mothers worried about being put at risk in the hospital setting. We knew it was time to explore alternatives to hospital birth. The FMFA welcomed the opportunity to evaluate Manhattan Maternity, a modernization of the traditional birth system.
“In the midst of every crisis, lies great opportunity” –Albert Einstein
A vision to redesign birth in New York City
Birth Reimagined
Dr. Jaqueline Worth and Dr. George Mussalli co-founded Manhattan Maternity in 2019, with an ambitious goal- to redesign labor and delivery process in New York City. Central themes in this redesign include:
- Designing a serene, comfortable and functional out of hospital birthing space
- Developing clinical protocols that both utilize the latest evidence-based principles and maintain high quality individualized treatment options
- Establishing clinical partnerships to provide robust safety and quality programs for out of hospital birth
- Incorporating technological solutions to make birth safer, more private and intimate while reducing healthcare costs
- Identifying family, doulas, educators, and other birth workers as essential components in best birth experiences
Dr. Jaqueline Worth and Dr. George Mussalli
Doctors Worth and Mussalli have been delivering babies for over 25 years. Their years of experience is the basis for the belief that an out of hospital birth can be both safe and highly satisfying. The application of best science and unparalleled compassion has made their private practice, Village Obstetrics, one of the most sought-after sites for obstetrical care in New York City.
Click below for specifics of the Manhattan Maternity Project study.
Manhattan Maternity has developed a unique concept to create an environment that adjusts the level of regimentation of care to the level of need and apportions level of medical resources to level of need.
Given the Corona pandemic, there has been an intense desire for women to be able to deliver their babies in a safe environment – away from the crisis environment of the hospitals at which partners/husbands have little to no ability to share in the birth process, adding stress to the mother.
FMFA will be studying and monitoring the effects of Manhattan Maternity’s pioneering model of creating a more patient-centric, less sterile, and compassionate environment for women to safely have their babies. The FMFA has previously published papers on such analyses with relationship to high risk care. Here, we focus on the majority of women who are not high risk, want a “better environment” to have their babies, but want to make sure it is done in a safe and caring center.
Dr. Jaqueline Worth spoke with Every Mother CEO Allison Rapaport about the best ways to stay safe while pregnant and delivering during this time.
Doctors Worth and Mussalli discuss how Covid-19 has affected their labor and delivery process in New York City.
Doctor Mussalli explains how the maternity center could reduce the rate of unnecessary cesarean sections and contribute to birth equity.
Doctors Worth and Mussalli envision a calm, relaxed space with enhanced amenities and extended postpartum stay.