Maternity

Congratulations on your Pregnancy

Once you have had your pregnancy confirmed at your visit to the doctor at our surgery, discussions about your choice for antenatal services, care and delivery of your baby will take place. Following this, a referral will be sent to the appropriate clinician that you are expecting a baby.

First antenatal clinic appointment

As you leave the surgery, you will need to make your first antenatal appointment at reception to see Sue Morris, Community Midwife.
Your first antenatal appointment will be at The Medical Training Centre, 1, Worcester Street, (not at the main surgery), either on a Tuesday or Friday morning, and usually takes about 30 minutes.
Please note: All further antenatal appointments will take place at the main surgery.

At this first appointment, your midwife will complete forms, give you some notes that you will need to present at all appointments when you have antenatal care, and offer you lots of information on many matters, including healthy lifestyle and dietary guidance, smoking cessation, parent-craft classes, breast feeding advice and much more. Sue will also offer you books and leaflets, and she can also refer you to other agencies for any particular individual matters should they arise during your discussions.
The midwife will arrange a scan appointment for you at your chosen hospital, which is usually carried out at around the 11th – 14th week, and may discuss with you about blood tests and other tests which may be appropriate for you, that are performed at different stages during your pregnancy. Some ladies may have already had a scan for various reasons prior to the 11th – 14th week of pregnancy. If this is the case with you, the midwife will then discuss when your next scan will be.

During this first antenatal appointment, all aspects of your ante natal care will be discussed and the frequency of your individual antenatal appointments. Please use this opportunity to ask about any questions you may have. Sue will also give you their contact numbers should you need to contact them between appointments.

Usually at around 16-18 weeks of your pregnancy, Sue will visit you at home at a pre-arranged time.

Follow-up Antenatal appointments

Whilst our doctors will continue to be involved in your antenatal care and work very closely with Sue, our antenatal clinics are “Midwifery Led” with you seeing your midwife at each appointment.

Your doctor will see you at around 28 and 37 weeks of your pregnancy (we will write to you with this appointment nearer the time) and at other times should you require an appointment.

Midwife Ante-natal appointments at the surgery

Antenatal clinics are held at the main Surgery on Wednesday mornings and Thursday afternoons by appointment.

At each appointment the midwife will discuss with you the frequency of your next appointment, and you will need to re-book for the antenatal clinic at reception, accordingly.

Of course should you have any queries or concerns between these appointments, please contact your midwife or call the surgery (please see telephone contact numbers below).

What happens during future antenatal appointments with your midwife?

This varies a little, depending on each individual and your medical history, but usually it is something like:

During these visits you will be seen by your midwife. Please bring a specimen of urine and your notes (which Sue will have given you earlier on), with you to each appointment.

The midwife will test your urine specimen, take your blood pressure, check your baby’s size and listen to the foetal heart, arrange any blood tests which may be due etc and discuss any concerns or problems you may have.

28 and 37 weeks of pregnancy - Appointment with your usual doctor.

You will receive an appointment from our secretary Bev Sandford for to see your usual doctor at the surgery for antenatal care at around this time of your pregnancy.

During this appointment to doctor will record your blood pressure and urine test results, examine your abdomen, listen to your baby’s heartbeat, review your scan and any blood test results you may have had taken.

The doctor will then advise you when you need to next see the midwife.

Meeting your Health Visitor

We have one Nursery Nurse – Anne Kelly and three Health Visitors attached to our practice – Diane Woolliscroft, Lisa Price and Natasha Brookes, who can all be contacted on 01384 366550, and are based at The Stourbridge Health and Social Care Centre (previously the old Corbett Hospital site).

At around 36 weeks of your pregnancy the Health Visitors will contact and invite you to meet them and offer you information about their supportive and advisory role for you and your baby from birth until they go to school.

*Should you need any advice between antenatal visits, please contact the surgery on 01384 371616 or alternatively contact the community midwife on 01384 456111 (ext 3358)

         
Remember that being pregnant is a normal process. Enjoy it!

Post Natal Care

Nearer the time you will have more details about what happens when you come home from hospital when you have had your baby. What generally happens is that the midwife calls to see you once you are home from hospital, at intervals, for a few days.

The Health Visitor will also call to see you too. This is around when your baby is 10 – 14 days old. During their visits to you, they will talk to you about your baby’s immunisations which will first be due when he / she is 8 weeks old, checking your baby’s growth and progress, and discuss any questions or concerns you may have.

Your Health Visitor will discuss and carry out your baby’s hearing check, during one of their early visits.

You will be invited by letter for your post natal check up at the surgery and baby’s first health check with the doctor, at around the time when your baby is about 6 weeks old.

Medical Students

As you may know our Doctors are very involved with the training of Medical Students from the University of Birmingham. Some students, as part of the requirements for their studies, follow the progress of pregnancy and the baby’s first year.

If you would like more details about this, and how you could  be involved, please contact:

Melanie Price
The Medical Training Centre
1 Worcester Street

Telephone: 01384 370713.

At a glance ……..Useful Telephone Numbers

Worcester Street Surgery	01384 371616
Community Midwife (Sue)	01384 244358
Delivery Suite Russells Hall Hospital	01384 244357
Health Visitors (Stourbridge Centre)	01384 366550
NHS Direct	0845 4647
Russells Hall Hospital (Switchboard)	01384 456111

09/2008

Baby's Development & Progress

For further information on the services we provide after the baby is born, please see the following link: Baby's Development & Progress.