Preparations for Childbirth on Shabbat
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Question
My wife is at the end of week 40, we live in Beit Shemesh, and she wants to give birth at Hadassah Mount Scopus. The question is whether it is advisable to travel by private car and not by ambulance if the birth occurs on Shabbat. If so, what preparations should be made in advance to avoid carrying outside the Shabbat boundary, and when should we leave, at what stage of contractions? (This is the first birth)
Answer
Shalom Rav and easy childbirth
Regarding the preference for travel, if the ambulance driver is Jewish, it is preferable for her husband to drive her, thereby avoiding unnecessary Shabbat desecration through the call and the ambulance ride to the maternity hospital. However, if there is an option to call a non-Jewish ambulance driver, it is preferable to call him. [Even though this requires making a phone call, during the ride there are thousands of ignitions every minute, and the call is one action. Additionally, when calling a non-Jew, there will be no issue with turning off the vehicle upon arrival at the hospital].
Regarding carrying by travel: A woman who knows she may need to travel for childbirth on Shabbat should prepare the necessary documents for childbirth in the car, as well as other items she will need, to avoid having to carry them into the car on Shabbat. If the hospital is outside the Shabbat boundary [beyond two thousand cubits, 1000 meters, outside the city where she resides], she should remove from the car anything she does not need for childbirth, to avoid carrying unnecessary items outside the boundary on Shabbat.
Source
Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, Siman 330