Childbirth on Shabbat

Hello and blessings! My wife is in her ninth month of pregnancy, and I would like to know the halachot regarding childbirth on Shabbat, such as how to travel to the hospital by car/ambulance, what is permitted and forbidden to take, whether it is allowed to listen to meditations and calming things during contractions at home and during labor, whether it is permitted to take a hot bath when contractions begin, and more... If there is a centralized place for all these halachot nowadays, I would appreciate receiving it here. Thank you very much.

I am attaching the instructions of the Gaon, Rabbi Avraham Fried, shlita, on the matter:

Since I couldn't attach a file, I will try to copy the text for you:

Guidelines and Instructions for a Woman Giving Birth on Shabbat

Preparations from Friday

A. A pregnant woman who has reached the ninth month of her pregnancy should prepare all the necessities for childbirth before Shabbat, so she will not need to desecrate Shabbat, such as writing her name and personal details and other documents needed for admission to the hospital.

B. For this reason, it is advisable to dial the phone numbers that might be needed on Shabbat close to Shabbat, so they appear in the recent calls, thereby reducing Shabbat desecration, and it is preferable to disable the automatic lock on the phone to minimize unnecessary presses.

C. A woman who feels contractions on Friday evening and estimates that she may need to give birth on Shabbat should come to the hospital on Friday evening so she will not need to travel on Shabbat.

D. If she does not have contractions on Friday evening and the due date falls on Shabbat, and there is concern she will give birth on Shabbat, she is not required by law to stay near the hospital on Shabbat, but if she can stay near the hospital, it is praiseworthy.

E. One who drives himself should ideally arrange for a manual diesel car before Shabbat, not a gasoline one, as the diesel engine saves many Shabbat desecrations, and in a manual car, there are fewer ignitions than in an automatic one, and also regarding turning off the engine in a manual car, there is a possibility to turn off the engine permissibly as will be explained below.

F. Ideally, the car should be cleared of unnecessary items to save on fuel burning and prevent unnecessary carrying of items outside the domain.

G. It is also advisable to turn off all the lights that can be turned off in the car.

H. If a navigation device is needed to direct the journey, the hospital address should be pre-entered into the device's memory to minimize presses on Shabbat.

I. A bag should be prepared containing the necessary documents for the woman giving birth, and care should be taken that only the items needed for childbirth are in the bag to prevent carrying unnecessary items as explained in the previous section.

Traveling on Shabbat

J. Traveling to the hospital on Shabbat before childbirth is permitted if there are frequent contractions every ten minutes, and each contraction lasts about a minute, or in case of a doubt of life-threatening situations such as water breaking, etc.

K. Even if the contractions stop during the journey, the journey can continue, as regular contractions have already started and may resume at any moment, and the likelihood is that she will give birth soon.

L. When she does not feel movements for a time, she should lie on her side and eat a piece of chocolate, etc., and after twenty minutes lie on her left side for half an hour and listen to the fetus's movements, if she still does not feel, she should repeat this again, and if after two hours she still does not feel movements (which is rare in the ninth month), it is permitted to travel to the hospital.

M. When calling on Shabbat, it is preferable to do so through a minor, and preferably a minor who is not her son, and if there is no minor, she should do it herself with a change.

N. It is preferable to travel to the hospital with a non-Jewish driver rather than with an ambulance driven by a Jewish driver.

O. If there is no non-Jew, and she has a private car, it is preferable to drive herself rather than call an ambulance, as this desecrates Shabbat by calling the ambulance, and also causes unnecessary travel for the ambulance driver from the starting point to the woman's house, which is unnecessary Shabbat desecration.

P. Pressing the gas pedal, but if driving an automatic car, she should stop as usual even if the lights turn on, as the stop is necessary to bring the woman to the hospital.

Q. Turning off the engine, since it is not needed for the woman, ideally if there is a non-Jew, hint to him to turn off the engine, and in a pinch even tell him explicitly to turn off, and if there is no non-Jew, and driving a manual car and did not stop pressing the gas pedal, remain in third gear and press the brake without pressing the clutch, and the stop itself, which is necessary for the patient, turns off the engine, and turning off the engine is not considered a separate action that is not needed for the patient, and ideally do this with a change, such as pressing with the other foot, and in an automatic car where pressing the brake stops the car as usual without turning off the engine, there is no place to permit turning off the engine, but the great poskim ruled, according to the instruction of Maran the Chazon Ish, that if there is a minor with her who can turn off, she should tell him to turn off, and ideally, a minor who is not her son, and if there is no minor with her, she should turn off the engine herself with a change, and if she can avoid turning off the engine and lock the car with another key prepared in advance, it is praiseworthy.

R. If she does not have a private car, there is no need to ask a neighbor to drive in his car to avoid calling an ambulance, but she should call an ambulance, and even if the ambulance desecrates Shabbat more than necessary, pressing the phone should ideally be done with a change.

S. Anyone needed by the woman giving birth can accompany her to the hospital.

T. It is permitted to call the mother of the woman giving birth or another woman needed by the woman giving birth to come with her to the hospital, but ideally, a non-Jew should call, and if there is no non-Jew, it is permitted to call herself, and if possible, call with a change.

U. If the driver is a non-Jew, the companion can travel with her, but if the driver is Jewish, the companion should not travel with her.

V. When the hospital is outside the domain, she should only take what is needed for the birth itself, but other items should not be carried outside the domain, and also clothes after the birth are forbidden, as she can use the hospital's clothes, and if the driver is a non-Jew, it is permitted to carry clothes needed after the birth, as it is permitted for a patient who is not in danger to do his needs through a non-Jew.

In the Hospital

She should only say one name, also on questions that are not vital, she should try to avoid answering, and if it is impossible to be admitted without this, it is permitted to answer them as well.

W. Regarding entering through automatic doors activated by an electronic beam recognizing the one standing nearby, if the signs have already appeared, given by the sages to define her as a patient in danger, on whom Shabbat is desecrated, it is permitted for her to enter, and also in this case, ideally through a non-Jew's instruction, and if there is no non-Jew, through a minor, and ideally a minor who is not her son, and if there is no minor, she should enter herself, and ideally do this with a change, and there is an opinion that according to the Shulchan Aruch, she does not need to make a change but enters as usual.

X. If the signs have not yet appeared, and she is not a patient in danger, Shabbat is not desecrated for her, therefore she should avoid entering through electric doors and gates, ideally wait for a patient in danger to pass, or a doctor who is also needed for saving a life, and also a non-Jew passing for his own needs, and if she is in more of a hurry, she can ask a non-Jew to open for her, but if the hospital admission takes a long time, and there is concern she will delay and be late, it is permitted for her to enter as it is permitted to travel by car to the hospital, and also in this case, ideally through a minor.

Y. Ascending, only if she is in a great hurry when leaving her home, or ascending in the hospital to be admitted to the department, then it is permitted for her to ascend as stated, but after the aforementioned signs have appeared, that she is a patient in danger, it is permitted for her to ascend in the elevator, and she does not need to exert herself to ascend the stairs.

Z. Opening the elevator should be done through a non-Jew, and if there is no non-Jew, through a minor who is not her son, and if there is no minor, it is permitted for her to open the elevator with a change, also entering the elevator should be done with a change, as in many elevators there is an automatic weighing mechanism weighing the entrant into the elevator, and the entry itself activates the weighing mechanism, and according to the Shulchan Aruch, according to the explanation of the Griz from Brisk mentioned above, if she is a patient in danger, she does not need to make a change.

AA. If she gave birth on Wednesday close to twilight, when Shabbat is the fourth day, and seventy-two hours have not yet passed, if there is a non-Jew, she should do through a non-Jew, and if there is no non-Jew, it is permitted for her to do it herself.

Woman Giving Birth Lighting Candles

BB. If she is about to leave her home immediately after lighting the candles, she should not bless when lighting the candles at home, unless there are others who will remain in the house afterward and enjoy the light of the candles, and in this case, even if they arrived at the hospital before sunset, she is not obligated to light candles, as she has already fulfilled with the candles at home.

CC. If she lit at home with a blessing and then left for the hospital, and no one from the household remained at home to enjoy the candles, when she came to the hospital, she is obligated to light, but since she has already accepted Shabbat by lighting at home, she cannot light herself, therefore if her husband is with her, he should light, and if he is not with her, she should participate with one of the women lighting in the hospital for a coin.

DD. If she is hospitalized in the hospital on Shabbat, she is obligated to light candles in the hospital as mentioned above, and if she wants to light in the hospital lobby, if the light of the candles illuminates the eating place or the sleeping place, she can light with a blessing, and if not, she should eat something near the light of the candles, and thus she can light there with a blessing.

EE. After a cesarean section, when she cannot get up from her bed and eats in her room, it is permitted to bring her the candles to the bed to light them with a blessing, and then place them in a place where they will illuminate the room, but it is forbidden to place them in the dining room, as she does not eat there and does not enjoy the candles at all.

Carrying the Hospital Identification Bracelet

FF. It is forbidden to go out on Shabbat with the hospital identification bracelet in a place where there is no eruv, as the bracelet is not considered clothing or jewelry, and there is a prohibition on carrying in a public domain.

Eating Before Kiddush

GG. A woman who gave birth on Friday night and did not hear Kiddush, or even if she heard Kiddush but was unable to eat and did not fulfill the obligation of Kiddush, when she wants to eat and drink, she is obligated to make Kiddush on wine or grape juice, and if she cannot drink wine or grape juice, she should make Kiddush on bread, and if she can only eat soft things, she should rely on the Kiddush of the day in prayer, and in the morning she should make Kiddush on wine without saying "Vayechulu," and with this she also fulfilled the obligation of Kiddush of the day.