New Hampshire
A new statewide initiative aims to improve communication during labor
During labor things said can get lost in the rush – like a patient not knowing an incoming doctor’s name at the start of a new shift. Or sometimes patients worry about where their doctors are and if their personal concerns during delivery are being addressed.
It’s why a program called TeamBirth has been implemented at Dartmouth Health’s member hospitals with labor and delivery services.
TeamBirth was developed by Ariadne Labs, a health systems research center with the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. It addresses the health complications, mistreatment and high maternal mortality rates seen in the United States.
According to Ariadne Labs, 80 to 90% of patient harm comes from miscommunication between doctors and patients, with higher risks for Black and Indigenous people.
New Hampshire is the fifth state in the country to implement TeamBirth to all of its hospitals.
Dr. Emily Donelan is the medical director of the birthing pavilion at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, which launched their plan earlier this month. She said TeamBirth involves doctors, patients and their support teams, like doulas and midwives, writing out birth plans and important information on a whiteboard. It’s a way to make sure everyone is on the same page and patients feel empowered.
“I think the real goal is to prevent the telephone,” Donelan said. “That often happens in hospitals where the patient says something to the nurse, and then the nurse comes to the doctor, and then the doctor goes to the patient, but they’re not all in the same room simultaneously, and things can get lost.”
The whiteboard is just a tool for discussions patients and doctors will have with each other as labor begins. Donelan said that at various points during the delivery, especially when major decisions are made, doctors and patients will huddle at the patient’s bedside and discuss steps and options. The aim, she said, is to focus on the patient.
Doctors will ask the patient’s preferred name, how they want themselves and their baby to be treated, and encourage patients to use the whiteboard themselves – writing down questions, concerns and important information.
“So really eliciting their goals, their hopes, their dreams for their labor to make sure that before we jump into the plan and the decision making, we’re really centering what they want from this experience and hearing their voice first,” Donelan said.
Foundation for Healthy Families, the New Hampshire Perinatal Quality Collaborative and Unravel Healthcare are spearheading the TeamBirth initiative which is expanding to all hospitals with a labor and delivery unit in the state.
Exeter Hospital started implementing TeamBirth in 2024.
So far, the hospital has received positive feedback from patients who say they’ve felt heard and respected, says April St. Hilaire, director of The Family Center, The Center for Reproductive Care & Maternal Fetal Medicine at Exeter Hospital.
“Even in patients that don’t have the best outcomes, so to speak, like, let’s say they end up with a C-section versus a vaginal delivery, which happens, they still felt like they had a wonderful experience and were very well cared for,” St. Hilaire said.
St. Hilaire said it’s the shared decision making, as opposed to a patient being debriefed after a major decision is made, that can help healthcare providers earn trust.
Concord Hospital is rolling out TeamBirth this coming April.
Melissa Devine, director of Concord Hospital’s Women and Children’s Value Stream, said they’ve been building towards the launch of TeamBirth since October. She said TeamBirth isn’t an earth shattering shift – it’s really making sure everyone is on the same page during a significant life event.
“As we travel through the process, we know patients want transparency,” Devine said. “They want to be able to understand time frames. ‘When is my provider going to see me?’ And all of those little moments build the trust and just build the essence of making sure that everyone is on the same page when things matter most.”
Devine said Concord Hospital will also have prenatal services modeling TeamBirth at Laconia starting from six weeks gestation to after the first year of a newborn’s life.
New Hampshire
Tiger Woods arrested on suspicion of DUI, authorities say
JUPITER ISLAND — Tiger Woods showed signs of impairment Friday at the scene of a car crash in which he struck another vehicle and rolled his Land Rover, authorities said.
Woods was arrested on suspicion of DUI. The Martin County Sheriff’s Office said Woods was not injured.
The crash occurred just after 2 p.m. not far from where Woods lives on Jupiter Island.
Woods’ manager at Excel Sports did not immediately respond to a text message seeking information.
This was at least the third time Woods has been involved in a car crash, most recently in February 2021 when his SUV ran off a coastal road in Los Angeles at a high rate of speed, leading to multiple leg and ankle injuries. Woods said later doctors considered amputation.
Woods has played 11 tournaments since that 2021 crash, not finishing closer than within 16 shots of the winner the four times he finished 72 holes.
He also was arrested on a DUI charge in 2017 when south Florida police found him asleep behind the wheel of his car that was parked awkwardly with damage to the driver’s side. Woods said he had taken a bad mix of painkillers. He later pleaded guilty to reckless driving.
Woods won his fifth Masters, and 15th major, in 2019. He has 82 wins on the PGA Tour, tied for the all-time record with Sam Snead.
Woods, 50, had been working his way back to golf from a seventh back surgery in September. He had not decided whether he could play in the Masters on April 9-12.
His last official tournament was the British Open in 2024. Woods ruptured his Achilles tendon in March 2025 and that kept him off the course all season even before the back surgery. He managed to play in his indoor TGL golf league on Tuesday night.
He has kept deeply involved in PGA Tour affairs as chairman of the Future Competition Committee that is restructuring the model of the tour.
Woods also faced a soft deadline at the end of the month to decide whether to become U.S. Ryder Cup captain for the 2027 matches in Ireland. Woods was offered the job for the last Ryder Cup and did not turn it down until June. The PGA of America wants a decision much sooner this time.
Copyright 2026 NPR
New Hampshire
Hillary Clinton to return to New Hampshire | Fox News Video
Hillary Clinton is set to return to New Hampshire for a Democratic Party fundraiser while a progressive leader criticizes the party for being ‘tone-deaf’ by inviting her.
Hillary Clinton is returning to New Hampshire next month to headline the state’s Democratic Party’s annual spring fundraising dinner. A progressive leader criticizes the party as ‘tone-deaf’ for inviting Clinton, stating she’s ‘yesterday’s news.’ Fox News contributor Joe Concha weighs in on Clinton’s perceived comeback tour and discusses President Trump’s recent remarks about John F. Kennedy Jr.’s political ambitions.
New Hampshire
NH lawmakers approve bill that would make judges’ job evaluations public
A bill that would add elements to judicial performance evaluations for all state judges and make those evaluation reports public, cleared the New Hampshire House along party lines Thursday.
The bill’s backers, including Rep. Bob Lynn of Windham, former Chief Justice of New Hampshire Supreme Court, promoted the new requirements as a way to “invigorate” judicial performance, and said fully disclosing the reports is crucial.
“I have to emphasize this provision in the bill as well as the other provisions of the bill were adopted in consultation with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court,” Lynn said
Under the bill, which was written with input from Supreme Court Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald, all judges – including part-time judges and retired judges who sometimes hear cases – would undergo evaluation at least every three years. Evaluations would include courtroom observations and analyses of how efficiently they process cases. Right now, judicial performance reviews remain confidential unless a judge receives two consecutive subpar evaluations.
The proposal comes at a time of tension between the judicial branch and lawmakers, spurred by recent court rulings finding the state isn’t meeting school funding obligations, and by judicial branch spending and management practices.
Democrats who criticized the new judicial evaluation bill say it goes too far and that the legislature should resist the urge to meddle in court operations.
“Many of us have been frustrated by recent activities coming out of the judicial branch – this is probably a bipartisan sentiment,” said Rep. Mark Paige of Exeter. “But to the extent that this bill appeals as a means to scratch your judicial frustration itch, consider other available remedies.”
Democrats also argued that making judicial reviews public could pose safety risks in an era of increased political violence including against judges.
“Publication would do real harm, inviting harassment of judges as violent threats against U.S judges have surged 327 percent since last year,” said Rep. Catherine Rombeau of Bedford, citing research from the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism.
But Republicans disputed such arguments, and said public reviews are also one of the few tools lawmakers have to make sure judges are performing their duties effectively.
“Judges are appointed once and serve until the age of 70,” said Rep. Ken Weyler of Kingston.
“All employees, including judges, benefit from constructive evaluation.”
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