Made possible by a nearly $142,000 grant from the Dunkin’ Joy in Childhood Foundation, these modified rooms are calming, controlled spaces aimed at reducing stress, agitation, and anxiety for patients, particularly those who are neurodivergent or on the autism spectrum.

When she felt the first contractions at 11:15 p.m. New Year’s Eve, Renai Townsend thought she had time to get to Boston to deliver her second child. “I thought they were Braxton Hicks contractions, which I had before,” she said. Renai called her parents to come over to watch her 2-year-old son, Will...