Jasmin Harris, a second-year resident and new mother, recently shared her experience giving birth at Temple Women & Families Hospital. Harris, who attended the Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine, said her education there influenced her decision to deliver at Temple Health.
“I went to the Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine,” Harris said. “The quality of the education there made me want to deliver at Temple.”
Due to her high-risk pregnancy, Harris had weekly ultrasound and monitoring appointments at TUH-Main Campus during her last trimester. She noted that she became familiar with the staff during this period. “I got to know the staff really well,” she said. “They were always so excited to tell me about how they were moving soon, and how I’d get to give birth at the new hospital.”
Harris was among the first patients to deliver at Temple Women & Families Hospital, which is described as the region’s only hospital dedicated exclusively to women’s and infants’ care. “I had such a blessed experience,” she said. “From the nursing staff to the residents to the attendings, everybody was so kind and informative.”
She also addressed concerns she felt as a Black woman with a high-risk pregnancy: “As a black woman, there’s a lot of apprehension going into labor, and then with having a high-risk pregnancy, there were so many things that I could have been nervous about,” Harris explained. “But I felt very safe giving birth there. The staff was impeccable, everybody was knowledgeable, and I was super comfortable delivering.”
Harris highlighted how technology played an important role in connecting her family during delivery. With most of her family living in Atlanta and New Orleans but only two people allowed in the delivery room, hospital staff suggested using big-screen TVs for video calls—a feature unique in the region.
“I was like, ‘Wait, what? This is amazing,’” Harris recalled about being able to connect with family virtually during childbirth. She added that having family on video call provided encouragement: “Everyone wanted to be part of the moment, and being on the call allowed them to do that. My sister was in the room with me when I started pushing, and she dialed in the rest of the family. Everybody was cheering for me, and it was so encouraging.”
Family members also expressed positive feedback about their virtual participation: “My best friend and my daughter’s other grandmother told me, ‘It was the best,’” Harris remembered. “‘They said, ‘We could see you so clearly, and we were cheering you on, and it was so much fun.’”
Reflecting on her experience after returning home with her newborn daughter—her family’s first granddaughter—Harris emphasized how important technology was for staying connected: “If I had been at a different hospital that didn’t have that technology, what would I have done?” she asked. “It honestly was such a blessing.”
