TeamBirth

Teamwork and communication for patient-centered childbirth.

Every person deserves a voice in their care when having a baby. TeamBirth supports open communication among patients, their support people, and clinicians during birth. Through structured huddles and a shared planning board, everyone reaches decisions together.

300+ hospitals 24 states 5 countries

The approach

One board, in the room, that everyone can see.

The TeamBirth Labor and Delivery Shared Planning Tool: a board divided into four fields, Team, Preferences, Plan and Next Huddle, with a labor progress scale running from early labor to active labor to pushing.

Team

Every member of the care team is named and introduced, beginning with the person giving birth.

Preferences

The patient’s birth preferences are asked for and elevated so the whole team can honor them.

Plan

Me, baby and labor progress, reviewed and agreed together at each assessment.

Next huddle

The team commits to a clear time for the next check-in, so communication never stalls.

Impact

Better experiences on both sides of the bed.

Patients

99%Reported clear communication with providers and the ability to share care preferences
99%Had their desired role in the birthing experience
96%Felt their preferences made a difference in their care

Clinicians

94%Felt TeamBirth improved care through better communication, teamwork, and shared decision-making
90%Would recommend TeamBirth to another labor and delivery unit
88%Clarified C-section decision-making in non-urgent clinical situations

Source: TeamBirth pilot trial. Linked citation to be added before launch.

Why it matters

The stakes are high, and the gaps are preventable.

80–90% of patient harm involves failures in communication and teamwork

People giving birth in the U.S. face more mistreatment, complications, and death than in any other high-income country, and the risks are even greater for Black and Indigenous people.

TeamBirth closes that gap.

Where we come in

We pay for it at the hospitals that cannot.

TeamBirth is delivered by Unravel Healthcare. The Alliance funds twelve-month implementations at labor and delivery units that qualify for TeamBirth but don’t have the budget to cover it, so no hospital misses out because of cost.

For hospitals

Your unit doesn’t need to wait on budget to bring TeamBirth in. Start here.

See if your hospital qualifies

For funders

Fund one hospital, or fund a cohort of them. The size of the gift sets the size of the impact.

Support this work