Labor Intensive

The stories from the labor and delivery ward at UW Medical Center in Seattle are often told breathlessly.A nurse tells of a pregnant woman who arrived at…

In Coupeville, Washington, Sarah Meyer is pressing a fetal Doppler on Christine Meyer’s belly to check the baby’s heart rate.Meyer, no relation to…

Public health officials across the U.S. say the number of cesarean sections being performed has gotten way out of hand. It's a life-saving surgery for…

It’s 7 p.m. on a Thursday at Valley Hospital and Medical Center in Spokane, and Dr. Nathan Meltzer has already had a very long day.He has one mother in…

00000181-fa79-da89-a38d-fb7f2a950000Cesarean deliveries have increased over the last 15 years, in Seattle, and around the state—for no apparent medical reason. Now hospitals around the state are trying to bring those rates back down.In a new series called "Labor Intensive," KUOW looks at what some hospitals are doing to cut down on excessive deliveries by C-section.Read stories from the series and explore others about birth and parenting.