birthing – Beijing Kids

What’s It Really Like Giving Birth in Beijing?

Admin — Mon, 21 Jul 2025 03:30:00 +0000

On Jul 23, at 9.17pm, my second little baby girl was born in Beijing. I know firsthand the tornado of question marks that swirl in the mind of any mother-to-be, whether pregnant, trying to conceive, or just planning. The experience is already daunting enough, but add being an expat away from family in a country where you don’t speak the language and cultural differences peak and it’s next-level.

Then there’s the eternal debate: private vs. public hospitals. I’ve done both – first baby in public, second in private – and there are a few things I learned.

For me, it wasn’t just “Can we afford private?” but “Is the price difference worth it?” The first time, I chose public because

The most experienced doctors usually work there.
Private hospitals may transfer you to public if complications arise (and as a clueless first-timer, that safety net mattered).

But! Public doesn’t have to mean overwhelming hospitals where you queue for hours while struggling with your translating app to decode the doctor’s rushed comments. Smaller, pregnancy-focused public hospitals exist, some with English-speaking staff and even husband-friendly policies (yes, he can join for check-ups and labor!).

Why I Switched to Private for Baby #2

Logistics: My old hospital was now a cross-city trek, and dragging a toddler to appointments felt like an Olympic endurance event.
Experience: This time, I knew what to expect – low-risk pregnancy, low odds of complications.
Negotiation Wins: In true Chinese fashion, you can haggle birth package prices. With birth rates down, hospitals are eager to deal.

Through a series of “only-in-Beijing” twists, I landed at New Century Women and Children’s Hospital in Wangjing. Set in a park, it felt like a wellness retreat. The experience I had was incredible, from being able to have check-ups on weekends, to having them being comfortable, calm, and special.

The really important part, however, is, of course, the birth, and having something to compare it to, I was blown away! Let me be frank, I have heard and seen stories both good and bad from all kinds of hospitals, and so I do not believe that the likelihood of things going as you hope depends on whether you choose private or public. That being said, there were several things at this birth that contributed to an amazing experience.

Constant communication:
The staff constantly updated us, from letting me know how far I was dilated and telling me when they would check again, to letting me know what each test or check was for, making sure I was comfortable and always checking whether I needed anything. One of the complaints I hear most from moms, especially here, was not always knowing what was going on or why, and not understanding why things were done or not feeling understood. While I was being checked for active labor, the anesthetist and midwife both came to introduce themselves and to find out if I had any concerns or requests for my labor.
Being heard:
While this is essentially part of communication, I decided it deserves its own little rant only because of how important it is that your team not only understands you but also takes you seriously. My first birth, I did not feel taken seriously about most of the concerns or requests I had. Of course, knowing more clearly what I wanted to advocate for this time helped a lot, but what really blew me away was how easily I could request for things without any push back. From asking to have local anesthesia in case of a tear (should the epidural stop working, as it did first time around), to letting them know when I felt pain that I shouldn’t and having it promptly dealt with. Whatever I had to say was listened to, and either action was quickly taken, or an acceptable and thorough explanation was offered (like when I experienced nausea… totally normal btw!)
Professional caring staff:
Every single nurse, doctor, sales lady or liaison we dealt with was kind, gentle and experienced. The expertise was obvious and the warmth of being treated gently and with kindness was an essential contribution to making the whole experience a calm and focused one. By 9pm (which means night shift staff) I was 6cm dilated, and the doctor got me to 10cm fully dilated within five minutes simply by guiding me on how to push in a certain way. When it was time to start the second stage of labor, suddenly every staff member was scurrying about, preparing me, preparing the instruments and the baby-checking station etc. Thanks to this doctor’s very clear instructions, experienced techniques and expertise, by 9.17pm my daughter was born. We went from being just over half-way dilated to holding our daughter in under 20 minutes, and it was totally stress-free.
Comfortable facilities:
From checking in to checking out, I did not once see (nor was I seen by) any other patients and family members, which was a refreshing change from the group of curious gawkers that rushed into our hospital room during my first labor as soon as we were wheeled back from the labor hall. Everything was kept wonderfully clean, good meals and a water dispenser were provided, and we had a call button if we ever need anything from someone holding the baby for a moment while I used the loo to a replacement of tissues or pajamas.
Bonus features:
While the prenatal and birthing experience was more than enough to convince me to go back to this hospital again, there were added extras that definitely sweetened the deal, some of which we didn’t even know were included! On the last night of our two-night stay, we received a five-course meal complete with a full-sized rainbow cheesecake (that’s right, people, no dry sponge with heaps of cream and fruit!) all nicely set-out on a beautiful table wheeled into our room. A yuesao was provided for the first 12 hours (crucial for catching up on sleep!), and on the last morning, a professional photographer came to take some photos that were sent to me later on in a beautiful leather-bound album. The same photography company will then do an almost Anne Geddes-style photoshoot at your home with three outfits/scenes of your baby for a secondary album. And while all meals and even snacks are provided, you can also order waimai and the hospital will have it brought to you. In the end, nothing can be guaranteed, and experiences are often specific to people. However, due to the practices in place at this hospital specifically, I feel confident that I was given the best chance at success and comfort. While I am not sure if I will be having any more kids, I am sure I would go back to New Century if I did.

Images: Janita Shahsavari

The Miracle of Giving Birth at Beijing United Family Hospital

Sisi_Chen — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 02:00:00 +0000

When Savvy and I found out that we were giving birth to twins, we knew we wanted to deliver at an international hospital. With the birth of our daughter in Shenzhen, we opted to deliver at a small neighborhood Chinese hospital that friends of ours had used.

Because of its size, most Chinese would not go there, preferring to use the larger, better-known hospitals instead. The downside to the big hospitals was that patients literally waited in line to deliver their babies naturally and there were no private rooms. The quiet neighborhood hospital was by no means slacking on deliveries – the day Reina was born, four other women delivered babies via scheduled C-sections.

Unfortunately for us, our natural delivery got complicated and Reina ended up being delivered via emergency C-section. Though the hospital gave us a large private room with two beds and ensured that Savvy received a steady dose of liquids intravenously, the staff did little else to make life easy the week we were there.

For example, we had to arrange our own meals and completely stock the bathroom as nothing was provided for, not even a hand towel. Had we been warned, this would not have been a big deal, but we didn’t know until the baby was in hand and we entered a very bare hospital room. Not a disaster, but certainly an inconvenience and an untimely lesson in the cultural differences in hospital care. However, for a few thousand RMB, there really wasn’t much room for complaint.

Consequently, this time around, we knew we didn’t want to go for the budget option since twins have a higher chance of being born with complications. Living in Wangjing and not wanting to be far from whichever hospital we settled on, we narrowed our search to Beijing United Family Hospital for several reasons: neonatal care facilities (in case of complications), reputation, location (just 3.2km away from us), and above all, Dr. Masoud Afnan – the head of the hospital’s OB/GYN department.

Knowing we were giving birth at one of Asia’s best hospitals put our minds at ease regarding any “what if something goes wrong” scenarios. They have the training, procedures, and expertise to handle any complications. Indeed, even some of the area’s centers for delivering babies rush mothers in labor to BJU when there is a difficult delivery that they are not prepared for. When things go wrong, you want a hospital with neonatal care units at the ready. And with twins, you want to make sure they have more than one.

As for BJU’s reputation, we have lost count of the number of couples we have met in Beijing that delivered their babies at BJU. I have read some complaints before, mainly about staff not being friendly enough, but I’ve never met anyone who regretted their choice of delivering there. And honestly, out of the dozens of staff with whom we interacted, we only encountered two who seemed overly focused on dealing with the routine at hand and aloof to our emotional state at the time due to sleep deprivation, postpartum emotions, and probably their just not being the most socially-adept in any situation.

But the majority of the staff were the kind of people I wanted to take home with us to help care for our babies and continue to develop a relationship with. One such nurse was Holly, who has been at the hospital for years in the maternity ward. She had such a soothing and in-control presence that I mistook her for the head nurse. Like Holly, it was clear that most of the nurses adored babies and were happiest when assisting with the care of newborns.

Without question though, the single greatest asset the hospital had going for it was Dr. Afnan. His commitment and care to ensuring that all of our questions and concerns were addressed leading up to the delivery was beyond the call of duty and he never rushed us even when he had other commitments to attend to. As we were delivering twins, he even stayed abreast of the latest research out of New Zealand regarding the best time for delivery, since we had to do a scheduled C-section (37 weeks, if you are interested). Dr. Afnan’s calm demeanor, genuine care, and even his bow ties made him the right choice for us.

In the end, our double delivery went off without any complications and both boys are now 4 weeks old and very healthy. I’ll write a couple of more blog posts about the delivery process and the post-op care in the coming weeks, but bottom line, if we had to do it again, and my wife vehemently assures me we will not, we would deliver once more at BJU.

Photo by Chris Lay

From the Forums: Breast Milk, Wet Wipes and Baby Birthing Options Galore

beijingkids — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 08:00:00 +0000

Planning on having a baby in Beijing? Find out what you need to know about maternity and baby care on The BeijingKids forums. Here are some highlights:

How to donate breast milk in Beijing?
“Hi, my friend runs China Little Flower orphanages, and they have one especially for medically fragile orphans (typically orphaned at birth because of their “imperfections” so almost all are infants). CLF houses and feeds these babies and arranges for life saving medical help and surgeries if needed.” More.

Are Baby Wipes Suitable for use with New Born Babies?
“Research studies from the UK have led to 75% of maternity hospitals changing their practice in relation to products used for newborns. The common practice of cleansing the diaper area with baby wipes is now discouraged for babies under the age of 4 weeks. Many manufacturers of baby wipes advertise their product as being suitable for newborns. Dermatologists in the UK say that the skin of newborns is not able to cope with the strength of the cleansing product in these baby wipes.” More.

Aside from BJU, anyone deliver baby at Mary or Amcare? Comments good/bad?
“… my wife gave birth to a little girl a month ago at Amcare… price is much less steep than BJU, but i believe the service and the level of the clinic and the doctors is as good as BJU. All the professors are heads of different obstetric services in Chinese hospital and as such are respected and experienced doctors. Overall we were very satisfied with the pre-natal care, even though it can be a bit confusing to go from one doctor to another as they’re not always the same who follow your case.” More.

Good advice on choosing pregnatal package and hospitals
“Beijing Family hospital in Lido area will give you a good prenatal package and also let you budget for the birth by letting you know what the cost of various options are. I had my 4th baby there and the birh was fantastic and worth every penny as English was widely spoken. Having said this, the prenatal care was average but was not consistent as you do not have a regular obstetrician which I believe is an American healh care system …” More.

Share Your Birthing Experience
“You may want to viist Baby Cafe, a breast feeding support group for pregnant and New Mums. You will have an opportunity to meet Mums who have given birth in a selection of the hospitals available in Beijing.” More.

Join in the discussion on the BeijingKids forum.