Expat Experience: Having a Baby in Zurich, Switzerland

How recently did you give birth in the country that you are reporting on?

December 2005

Describe your experience giving birth there. What type of facility did you go to? What (if any) type of pain management did you use? How long did you stay in the hospital? Was it a positive experience? Etc...

I went to a private hospital that was recommended to me through my husband's work. His insurance would only pay for a semi-private room, but for 100CHF a day we were able to upgrade to a private room. You are allowed 10 days in the hospital and a mid-wife to come to your home if you leave before that. The hospital was like a hotel and every shift had at least one English speaking nurse on duty. It was a lovely stay, I would highly recommend the Swiss way to anyone who is pregnant.

How did you choose your doctor, midwife or other type of medical professional?

Recommendation of a Swiss citizen helping with our move. You can also contact a hospital and get a list of the doctors affiliated with them. We contacted the ob/gyn and a pediatrician via email and set up appointments before we arrived. The doctors spoke perfect English. My ob/gyn did a beautiful job on my c-section scar - my previous scar was pretty awful and he did an amazing job making it almost invisible.

If you were to have another child in this country, would you do anything differently in terms of preparation and/or the delivery?

Nothing different - do your homework and know what you want. They are very accommodating unless there is an emergency.

If a friend of yours living in the same country were expecting, what advice would you give her?

Get everything set up ahead of time in case there are any complications. The language barrier is not really a problem. If you are pregnant when you move, make sure to bring baby items as these things are really expensive in Switzerland.