Before you deliver, you need to know your hospital's placenta release policy — and most staff won't bring it up unless you ask. I personally called six Tulsa-area hospitals to find out exactly what each one requires. Here's what I learned.

🏥 Hillcrest Main 📋 Signed specimen release form required 🧊 Client provides cooler 📝 No formal policy on file — you must ask and advocate clearly at check-in.

🏥 Hillcrest South 📋 No formal release form — staff confirmed clients routinely retrieve placentas 🧊 Client provides cooler 📝 Specific protocol details were unavailable, but retrieval is common practice here.

🏥 St. Francis Main 📋 Signed specimen release form required 🧊 Client provides cooler ⏰ Placenta must be retrieved within 2 hours of delivery.

🏥 St. Francis South 📋 Hospital places an automatic "Placenta Hold" — released to client at discharge 🧊 Client provides cooler 📝 If early release is needed, the placenta is brought to your room and you release it directly to your pick-up person.

🏥 St. John Ascension Utica 📋 Signed specimen release form required 🧊 Client provides cooler — placenta stays in your room until pick-up 📝 You are responsible for keeping it in your room and handing it off directly.

🏥 OSU Medical 📋 Signed specimen release form required 🧊 Client provides cooler ⏰ Pick-up must occur within 12 hours of delivery.

The bottom line? Almost every Tulsa hospital will release your placenta — but YOU have to ask, advocate, and come prepared. Bring a cooler. Know your hospital's policy before your due date. Tell your birth team in advance.

Confident self-advocacy starts before you ever walk through those hospital doors. 🌿

📌 Pro Tip: Save this page, screenshot it, and share it with any Tulsa mama interested in keeping her placenta. Knowledge is the first step to a supported birth experience.