Personalized Births & Care

Personalized Births & Care

Torrance Memorial provides custom care for mom and baby.

Written by Laura Roe Stevens

There has never been a better time to deliver a baby at Torrance Memorial Medical Center. Moms can breathe a little easier as they plan their unique birthing experience. The wide variety of personalized innovations available today provides a safe and comfortable labor and delivery for mom, partner and baby.

“Our birth navigator program is growing so much we can individualize the experience for everyone who comes in,” explains Natalie Thorpe, RN, director of maternal child services at Torrance Memorial. “We have sound machines, Spotify playlists, aromatherapy, peanut balls and doula-trained nurses. These really help couples relax, feel supported and feel empowered at the same time.”

What’s So Special About Doula Training?

Torrance Memorial’s labor and delivery nurses have undergone doula training to better assist both the laboring mom and her partner, who may need support and/or advocacy. The training covers a variety of topics including massage, relaxation, breathing and movement techniques, as well as how best to apply heat and cold during labor and supportive communication assistance.

Laura Vombaur, RN, has been a labor and delivery nurse at Torrance Memorial for 32 years. She says her recent doula training has had a positive impact, as she can now help partners communicate and support each other better during delivery and assist in their communications with physicians. “The doula training reinforced what I teach in prepared childbirth classes and how I work with moms in labor. We help couples make their own decisions. And we learn to not project our own values onto the laboring woman. We must focus on what the family and mom is looking for, so the patient has more control over their delivery,” Vombaur says.

One way to do this is by offering coaching support to the partner who may get exhausted or flustered during labor. Another is by taking time to answer questions from the couple, which always arise afer the physician has left, so the couple can discuss options and feelings together.

Tender Care Through a Variety of Offerings

Torrance Memorial now has many personalized offerings for mom, partner and baby. Birthing and parenting classes help couples create a birth plan and plan for life with baby. Sleep-safe cribs and comfortable rooms allow the entire family to rest in ease after birth.

During labor and delivery, many comforting options are available such as sound machines, Spotify playlists and aromatherapy. Thorpe notes these help reduce stress and anxiety, which lowers the amount of stress hormones flowing through mom’s body.

Another offering Thorpe likes is the peanut ball—a peanut-shaped ball placed between mom’s legs as she lies on her side. It is known to promote labor progression by opening the pelvic outlet as she rests. This is especially helpful if a woman has had an epidural or needs to rest during labor due to complications. Comfortable, Upright, Birth (CUB) support devices are also available to help women get in different laboring positions.

“I’m so excited for all the offerings we now have,” says Thorpe. “Women and their partners are comforted with these personalized items. I’m convinced the more relaxed mom is, the better the outcome for her birthing experience.” •

Movement Disorder Clinic Meets Community’s Needs

Cedars-Sinai movement disorder specialist offers expert consultation for patients in the South Bay who are living with Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorder conditions.

Written by Lisa Buffington

In January 2021 the Torrance Memorial Lundquist Neurosciences Institute opened a Movement Disorders Clinic for patients living with neurological conditions that cause abnormal, increased body movements.

Led by Elliott Hogg, MD, a movement disorder specialist in the department of neurology at Cedars-Sinai, the clinic offers expert consultation for a full range of movement disorders, including:

• Ataxia

• Chorea

• Dystonia

• Essential tremor

• Hemifacial spasm

• Parkinson’s disease

• Tics

• Tremor

Dr. Hogg collaborates with each patient’s referring neurologist to develop a treatment plan that includes the latest therapies. With the addition of the Movement Disorder Clinic, Dr. Hogg and the Torrance Memorial neurosciences team hope to help as many people as possible in the South Bay.

“The Movement Disorder Clinic is definitely meeting a need in our community,” says Heidi Assigal, vice president of business and operations for Torrance Memorial Physician Network. “For patients who are living with a movement disorder, traveling to an academic medical center for care may be challenging. That’s why we wanted to bring convenient, coordinated care from academic medical center experts closer to home.”

Advanced Treatments and Clinical Trials

Torrance Memorial’s affiliation with Cedars-Sinai gives patients access to all Cedars-Sinai treatments and clinical trials, which currently include six clinical trials for all stages of Parkinson’s disease. “We can recruit patients from Torrance Memorial for clinical trials run by Cedars-Sinai, offering the latest, most promising treatment options to patients in the South Bay,” says Dr. Hogg.

Additionally, Torrance Memorial patients can access a surgical movement disorder treatment called deep brain stimulation (DBS) at Cedars-Sinai. During DBS, a neurosurgeon implants electrodes into specific areas of the brain to control abnormal brain activity. A pacemaker-like device in the upper chest is connected to the electrodes in the brain by a wire and can be programmed to control the amount of stimulation the brain receives.

“Patients who are candidates for DBS can have their presurgical evaluation and workup performed at Torrance Memorial, go to Cedars-Sinai for the procedure and receive follow-up care back at Torrance Memorial," says Dr. Hogg.

The Movement Disorder Clinic has been so well received in the community, they are already hoping to expand the clinic’s hours. According to Assigal, that success is an indication the clinic is achieving its goal: allowing patients to receive the advanced care they deserve locally without the stress of travel, traffic, second opinions and multiple health care providers.

“When patients come to the Movement Disorders Clinic, all treatment options are available,” he says. “Our patients can feel confident every treatment option that can be considered is being considered, and if they need additional care, it can be coordinated.” •

Patients living with a challenging movement disorder can now receive convenient, coordinated care closer to home.