OB or midwife recommendations for Alta Bates delivery

I just delivered a VBAC at Alta Bates with Dr. Kier Van Remoortere at the Berkeley campus of the Sutter East Bay Medical Foundation. I was very happy with her throughout the pregnancy, and then I was lucky in that she was on-call during my delivery as well and I had a great experience with her then too. I had a few complications during pregnancy, and I found that the Sutter system was well-integrated with respects to referrals, sharing information, etc. Since it's a big practice, there's no guarantee that you'll have your doctor of choice for the actual delivery, but I was pretty happy with each of the 4 OBs I saw during my pregnancy (out of 14).

I cannot recommend my midwives Ellie Griffinger and Gwen Haynes enough (private practice partners at Golden Oak Midwives). They spend ample time on appointments to address any and all concerns, and really take the time to build a trusting relationship with clients. They also have a beautiful space where they hold visits, and offer a number of extra resources through people in their community (workshops on lactation, acupuncture in pregnancy, choosing a doula, pelvic floor health, support groups for breastfeeding, etc). They also have practitioners working in their space who offer massage and pelvic floor physical therapy. I have not had my baby yet so I do not know what it will be like to work with them at Alta Bates, but they have a lot of reviews on their website and on Yelp that you can read.

We are LOVING Dr. Pavithra Venkat at Sutter (delivers at Alta Bates). We did the "Sutter doctor bingo" approach w/our first child 3 years ago and while everything turned out fine, we did end up feeling a little disjointed w/continuity of care during the pregnancy and like we didn't really care which doctor delivered the baby (we ended up w/a longer L&D stay and so were interacting w/several doctors we'd not met and didn't care AT ALL). Dr. Venkat never makes you feel rushed, is very responsive to questions and seems really committed to trying to help clients have the experience they want. A friend who had a really traumatic first birth experience also delivered w/her (scheduled C-section) for Baby #2 and gives her nothing but the highest praise.

I recommend Dr. Van Remoortere at sutter health in Berkeley. she was my OB while i was pregnant. She has a great bedside manner and is super knowledgeable.

I believe at alta bates you are not able to choose the ob who will delivery your baby. it will be whoever is working in labor and delivery that day. Dr Thomas delivered my emergency c section and she did an excellent job.

Ellie and Gwen with Golden Oak Midwives. Amazing pre and post natal care that was very personalized. I feel like I got the VIP treatment at Alta Bates and was treated like the goddess a birthing woman is! Really incredible ladies who care deeply about their work.

I highly recommend Dr. Lilia Lizano, she has offices in Berkeley and Hercules. I gave birth to my baby in November/2018 and had an amazing experience with her.

I delivered with Golden Oak Midwives this year and the two ladies are fantastic! Got a completely unmedicated birth that went very smoothly. If I ever want a second kid I would go with them again.

Kier Van Reemoortere is great!!! i give her all the credit for my not having a c-section. 

I worked with the golden oak midwifes with a delivery at Alta Bates. They were wonderful.

You must go to Golden Oaks midwifes over the Sutter Group. I had birth experiences with both of them and I can't stress how much better my experience was with Ellie and Gwen. I saw the Sutter group for (#1) and Golden Oaks for (#3). Golden Oaks is amazing and the provide excellent pre and post natal care. One of them will be there for your birth. In addition, they helped me deal with trauma from birth #1 with the Sutter Group. One of my strongest memories of birth #3 is knowing that Ellie has my back and really knew what I was capable of.

If nothing else, the Golden Oaks group was more efficient, you don't spend 45 minutes waiting for late appointments. 

All of the midwives at Pacifica Family Maternity Center, right down the street from Alta Bates, are phenomenal. They have a great relationship with Alta Bates and many of their patients choose concurrent care and deliver in hospital. I'm hoping to deliver at their birth center, but would highly recommend their services to anyone, regardless of where you're hoping to have your little one

Hi, I used to be with the large OB group from east bay Sutter Health medical foundation, but lost my privilages with them when Alta Bates Medical group severed ties with them as my medical group.  It SUCKED! i was so attached after delivering twice with their group and bummed when i got pregnant a third time and couldn't see my OB I had seen for over 7 years.  However, I found Dr Lilia Lizano for my third (which i delivered at Alta Bates a year ago).  Though it is a small practice (she has an office across from Alta Bates and also in Hercules i think) she was fantastic.  Amazing in fact.  It was amazing having her so present for my entire labor and delivery which included bed rest, and an induction.... and a healthy baby!!! i was blown away and really got the level of care i never knew before with the sutter east bay group that others were rec.  If you want to ask questions please feel free to ask...but i highly recommend her!