Registering before labor starts means SIH already has your information when you arrive, helping make your check-in process smoother. Simply visit the Admissions Desk in the front lobby of SIH Memorial Hospital of Carbondale any time before your sixth month of pregnancy to complete your registration in person. Questions? Call 618.549.0721. 

SIH Memorial Hospital of Carbondale
405 W. Jackson St.,
Carbondale, IL 62901

Parking is free for patients and visitors. The lot and garage are lit and patrolled 24 hours a day. A shuttle runs between the parking areas and the hospital from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m., use the emergency entrance.

Come in. You'll be cared for whether or not you registered ahead. Registration exists to make your arrival smoother, not to determine whether you're seen.

For labor: music, pillows, massage tools, personal items, slippers or footies, and a list of your medications.

To remember the day: camera, cell phone and charger, a receiving blanket, a laptop if you want to update family, and your Welcome book to stamp your baby's footprint.

For after: nursing bras, robe or nightgown, going-home outfits for you and your baby, and a car seat.

You can have up to four designated visitors during labor. After you move to your postpartum room, four at a time in a private room or two in a semi-private room. Your partner or support person can stay overnight.

General visiting hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and children under 12 aren't permitted in the department unless they're the baby's sibling.

Doulas are welcome in labor and delivery rooms, on the postpartum unit and in the operating room for a cesarean, and they don't count toward your visitor limit.

Yes, for a large number of languages, and a telecommunications device is available for patients who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Epidurals, IV medication and nitrous oxide, along with tubs for laboring in warm water. Anesthesia is available 24 hours a day, so an epidural doesn't wait for someone to drive in. Staff are also experienced in supporting unmedicated birth.

Yes, unless there's a medical reason to be apart. Most newborn procedures can be done at your bedside. In the first hour after birth, if your baby is medically stable, they go straight onto your chest for skin-to-skin contact, which helps regulate their temperature and blood sugar.

The Special Care Nursery is on site, so your baby is cared for in the same building where you're recovering. It cares for babies born as early as 30 weeks and weighing as little as 2.75 pounds, staffed by three full-time neonatologists, a neonatal nurse practitioner and nurses trained in newborn intensive care.

Parents can visit any time. You're encouraged to take part in your baby's care rather than watch it. Siblings aged two and older may visit after a short health screening.

You can call the nursery at any hour for an update on your baby at 618.549.0721, ext. 65202.

Your baby is stabilized here first, then transferred to St. Louis Children's Hospital. SIH Memorial Hospital of Carbondale is part of the St. Louis Children’s BJC Perinatal Network.

If you're 20 weeks pregnant or further along, or within six weeks of delivery, come to the OB ED for pelvic pain, signs of preterm labor, abnormal vaginal bleeding, urinary or bladder infection symptoms, or high blood pressure and other high-risk pregnancy concerns. It's open 24 hours a day. If you're unsure, come in.

Go to the Emergency Department at SIH Memorial Hospital of Carbondale. You'll be seen there.

For life-threatening emergencies, call 911.

Yes. Outpatient lactation appointments are available and covered by most insurance, including Medicaid. Call 618.549.0721, ext. 65217. You can also reach the mother and baby unit at ext. 65230 any hour of the day.

Many new parents do, and help is available. The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline is free and answered 24 hours a day at 1.833.852.6262, by call or text. The Illinois MOMS Line is at 1.866.364.6667. SIH also offers outpatient behavioral health services.

Yes. Southern Illinois Healthcare accepts all insurance plans; however, SIH is considered a preferred or in-network provider only for certain insurance networks. We recommend checking the full list of participating plans and contacting your insurance carrier to confirm coverage, network status, and any authorization requirements before receiving care.