San Francisco Birth Locations

First Trimester
Written By Sophie Smith


Most people I know choose UCSF or CPMC, both world-class hospitals. Your experience is more likely to be dictated by the specifics of your birth and the nursing staff you happen to encounter.


UCSF

  • Highest level NICU of all SF hospitals (level IV; the others are all level III)

  • Very natural birth and doula-friendly; have an excellent template for birth preferences

  • Large rooms with tubs, but older buildings and online systems

  • Teaching hospital - might be seen by a resident, so less experienced but could be more careful as they’re trying to prove themselves. Bigger teams so more of a revolving door of staff

  • Birth Center is at Mission Bay, but prenatal care offered at Mission Bay or Mount Zion 

  • Robyn Lamar is recommended OB and Becca Amirault is recommended midwife

  • Group prenatal care available through the Centering Program


Sutter/CPMC Van Ness 

  • New building (opened in 2019) with beautiful, spacious rooms and cutting-edge technology. No tubs, only showers.

  • Considered less natural birth friendly: 4% of births delivered by midwives, higher C-section rates (read more about C-sections here); however, they also serve the highest percentage of older moms (half their patients are over 35). The staff will respect your birth preferences and are happy to have you bring a doula, music, diffusers, etc.

  • Golden Gate OBGYN (recs for Bergiug, Franca, Wiggins, Benham) or  Pacific Gynecology (recs for Yee, Yu) are recommended affiliated practices. You can find other OBs accepting new patients through Sutter.

  • If you end up being a high-risk pregnancy (hypertension, advanced maternal age, pre-eclampsia, etc) Dr. Katz and Dr Shaffer re highly recommended Maternal Fetal Medicine doctors at Sutter


Sutter/CPMC Bernal

  • Program is run by midwives and is really beloved (there are also OBs available but they take more of a backseat role) 

  • Group prenatal care is available and highly reviewed

  • Facilities aren’t as nice as Van Ness location, but still offer all the same technology/services


Kaiser SF: 

  • Makes sense if you’re already in the Kaiser system. Unique model decreases the financial incentive for doctors to conduct unnecessary procedures

  • No midwife-deliveries, similarly high C-section rates as CPMC

  • Limited number of rooms, so chance of having to deliver at Kaiser Redwood City or Oakland

  • Teaching hospital - might be seen by a resident, so less experienced but could be more careful as they’re trying to prove themselves. 

  • Prenatal care offered at Mission Bay or SF Medical Center on Geary


ZSFG (formerly SF General)

  • Serves lower-income population, mostly on Medicare or uninsured

  • Considered the most natural birth/doula-friendly: led by midwives rather than doctors (40% of births delivered by midwives), free doula care provided if you don’t have one, tubs in rooms

  • Lowest C-section rate of any SF hospital*: 15% for midwife patients, 19% for all patients, but serves a younger population of mothers than the other hospitals 

  • Midwifery prenatal care available at the Obstetrics, Midwifery & Gynecology Clinic (5M) at ZSFG, the Mission Neighborhood Health Center, or the Excelsior Clinic 

  • Group prenatal care available through the Centering Program


SF Birth Center

  • Midwives provide prenatal care (including group sessions) and L&D care

  • You have more frequent and longer visits (both prenatal and postnatal) than you would at a hospital, and they are more holistic, covering a broader range of topics

  • Calm, home-like environment with tubs; limited pain relief medications (do offer nitrous oxide)

  • You are discharged back to your own home a few hours after birth, assuming everything is normal, and the midwives come and do home visits in the following days (rather than spending 2 nights in the hospital) 


Home birth (location = your home!)

Sophie Smith
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Choosing Prenatal Care and Birth Setting
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Managing First Trimester Challenges