It’s not every day that an Ob Hospitalist Group employee can give a firsthand testimonial about the care she received from one of our OB hospitalists. Well, November 14, 2017 was the day when Katie Geiss, OBHG Human Resources Business Partner, and her husband Tom welcomed their first child. Unlike other moms-to-be, Katie was fortunate enough to have the inside connection, and she visited St. Francis Eastside in Greenville, SC, to meet OBHG hospitalists Dr. Maridee Spearman and Dr. John Nordeen a couple weeks before her delivery.
At nearly 39 weeks pregnant, on the night of November 13, Katie started feeling contractions but wasn’t sure if she was in labor. After waiting about three hours, Katie and Tom finally decided to head to St. Francis Eastside around 1:30 a.m. OBHG hospitalist Dr. Ann Gorman came in and examined Katie, discovering that she was already dilated six centimeters.
“Since I was already six centimeters, they admitted me right away because they thought the baby was going to be coming really quickly,” said Katie.
Dr. Spearman, who also acts as team lead for the St. Francis Eastside program, was on shift November 14. She monitored Katie throughout her labor and collaborated closely with Katie’s OB/GYN to ensure a successful delivery.
“As soon as Dr. Spearman arrived for her shift, she must have seen my name on the list, because she came in right away to see how I was doing,” said Katie. “Not only that, she was with me for the entire process.”
Although Katie was pretty far along when she arrived at the hospital, her labor didn’t progress.
“Dr. Spearman and a nurse kept coming in to check if I was progressing while they consulted with my doctor,” said Katie. “It comforted me to know that there wasn’t just a nurse there.”
After Katie pushed for a long time, her OB/GYN arrived at the hospital and both doctors agreed that it was best to perform a C-section.
“Before my private physician arrived, Dr. Spearman was with me the entire time,” said Katie. “She was so sweet and even brought my husband coffee. She was trying to make us feel as relaxed as possible, and her confidence really assured me that I was going to be okay.”
Katie feels that her delivery was successful due to the smooth collaboration and communication between her private physician and Dr. Spearman.
“I knew I was in really good hands with two very experienced doctors.”
Thomas James Geiss was born at about 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 14 and weighed 7 pounds, 14 ounces. Katie stayed at St. Francis Eastside until Friday to recover from her C-section. When Dr. Spearman came back on shift that day, she checked on Katie and Thomas before they were discharged from the hospital.
Thanks to OBHG’s staff of caring and experienced clinicians, Katie’s story is just one of many happy endings that occur at OBHG programs across the country. Congratulations to Katie and Tom!