New Mayo Clinic Book Helps Expectant Parents Make Informed Decisions

Thursday, August 12, 2004

ROCHESTER, Minn. — When you decide to have a baby, the decisions you make from that time on affect more than just you. Your choices can have a lasting effect on your child. A new book, Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy (HarperCollins, ISBN 06-074637-8, $19.95), has the information needed to make these critical decisions for you and your baby. The book contains extensive month-by-month details of baby's growth and mom's physical and emotional health, a comprehensive pregnancy reference and an in-depth decision guide section that covers key issues you may face.

"The value of this book is the expertise behind the information," explains Roger Harms, M.D., editor-in-chief and a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology at Mayo Clinic Rochester. "I worked closely with Mary Murry, a nurse midwife, who provided the practical insights of a normal pregnancy and with specialists in obstetrics, neonatology and genetics, who provided the essential details for numerous pregnancy concerns. This combined effort gives expectant parents a solid understanding of what to anticipate as well as the information needed to make informed decisions."

Important decisions require reliable information

During pregnancy, you are likely to be faced with many important questions such as — how do I choose the best health care providers, should I have prenatal testing and when should I return to work. The unique "decision guide" section included in Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy can help. These decision guides for pregnancy, childbirth and parenthood offer detailed information to direct you toward the answers that are right for you and your situation. The 14 different decision guides provide balanced, dependable and easy-to-understand information in one convenient location. Among the topics are genetic screening, travel during pregnancy, pain options for labor and childbirth, and breast or bottle-feeding.

Comprehensive pregnancy reference guide

The Mayo Clinic Guide to a Health Pregnancy offers a clear, thorough and reliable reference section for your exciting and sometimes unpredictable pregnancy journey. The extensive reference section addresses common questions and concerns about pregnancy, self-care tips and advice on when to seek medical care for more than 100 pregnancy topics such as backache, fatigue and nausea.

In addition, the book's month-by-month look at mom and baby includes monthly "when to call" charts. The easy-to-use charts advise you when to contact your health care provider with pregnancy-related symptoms such as spotting or pain.

The Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy is available by calling 877-647-6397 (mention order code 920) or visit www.MayoClinic.com and click on the link for books and newsletters. The book is also available in most local bookstores. Revenue from the sale of this book helps support Mayo Clinic's medical research and education programs.

About the Editor-in-Chief As a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology at Mayo Clinic, Roger W. Harms, M.D., has guided thousands of women through pregnancy and childbirth. Throughout each pregnancy, his goal is to help parents-to-be make informed decisions that meet their personal values during the journey toward parenthood.

Teaching is Dr. Harms' other passion. He serves as associate dean for academic affairs at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and has received the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics "Excellence in Teaching" award. As medical director of the reproductive health center for MayoClinic.com, Dr. Harms has been a leader in parent education. Dr. Harms acknowledges fatherhood as his greatest learning experience.

About the Co-Editor Mary Murry, MSN, CNM, is the director of Nurse Midwifery and Gynecological Advanced Practice Services at Mayo Clinic Rochester. Her extensive background and training as a nurse midwife provided the practical insights, expectations and joys of a normal pregnancy for Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy.

Murry has been a nurse midwife for 20 years and has been board certified with the American College of Nurse Midwives since 1984. She received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio, certification in Nurse Midwifery from the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, and her master's in Nursing from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio.

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