Michel Odent, a French obstetrician whose natural childbirth innovations, including homelike delivery rooms and birthing pools, aimed to make new mothers feel calm and secure, died Aug. 19 in London.

Planning for labor and delivery means thinking through your options – and for some moms-to-be, that includes going medication-free. "If your goal is a medication-free delivery, that is absolutely ...

At Houston Methodist Willowbrook, two labor-and-delivery rooms stand out from the rest. The spaces look more like calm, spa-like suites than hospital units—dimmable lights, soft wood tones, a laboring ...