This page is to let you know what you can expect from all the health professionals involved in your antenatal care.

The first step is to confirm that you are pregnant and this can be done by purchasing a home pregnancy kit from your local chemist.

At around five to eight weeks of pregnancy you should make an appointment with the
Practice Nurse or GP who will offer some initial advice, start Folic Acid Vitamin Supplement (at a dose of 400mcg per day), Check your BP etc and refer you to the Midwife.

The Midwife will see you for an initial Booking appointment (45mins) and will give you a booklet entitled ‘Emma’s Diary’ which contains useful information. She will also inform the Health Visitor of your pregnancy. Whilst you are pregnant and until your baby is one year old you are entitled to free prescriptions and dental treatment and the nurse will arrange for an exemption certificate to be signed by a Doctor and sent off.

At your first appointment you will be given a Maternity Book, which you keep and take with you when you attend antenatal appointments with either the Doctor, Nurse, Midwife or hospital consultant.

Ask your GP or visit Dr Foster’s Good Birthing Guide on the internet at www.drfoster.co.uk/birth/ to read how maternity care is delivered in the UK and gives details of the services offered by individual maternity units. It has been designed to help you find the maternity care best suited to your individual needs.

Maternity units are divided into two groups: those run by midwives, and those with care shared by consultants and midwives.

The Midwife will discuss your options for delivery and provide you with dietary advice,
blood test and dating scan forms. During the early stages of your pregnancy you should have routine monthly checks with either the doctor or midwife to ensure your pregnancy is progressing well.

The Midwife arranges your blood tests and you can either have them done at the hospital or the practice.

Check List

Approximate Gestation - Appointment
5 – 8 weeks - Practice Nurse or GP
10 weeks - Midwife
14 weeks - First dating scan (an appointment will be sent by the hospital)
16 weeks - Blood tests for spina bifida (AFP) Downs, Blood group, HIV etc.
20 weeks - Scan to check for any anomalies
25 weeks - GP or Midwife (1st Baby only)
28 weeks - Hb and Antibody blood test
31 weeks - Midwife (1st baby only)
34 – 40 weeks - Fortnightly appointments with Midwife
40 weeks - GP or Midwife (1st baby only)
40+ - Weekly appointments with GP or Midwife

You do not need to be seen more frequently than set out above if everything is going well.
Your Health Visitor will visit you at home when your baby is 10 – 14 days old and can
advise on feeding, weaning and any family issues you may have.

Midwife

A midwife is a qualified nurse who has undertaken further training to provide and promote normal midwifery.
The midwife’s role in your maternity care is to prepare you for motherhood and promote good health for yourself and your baby by advising on the effects of drinking, smoking and good diet whilst you are pregnant.
The midwife guides you through your pregnancy and endeavours to detect any anomalies and make relevant referrals if necessary.
The midwife provides you with your options for delivery and will deliver your baby providing it is a normal birth.
Following the birth she will visit you on your first day at home. When your baby is five
days old she will carry out the Guthrie test and at ten days old she will discharge yourself and your baby from their care. Extra visits may be arranged according to need.

Health Visitor

The Health Visitor is a qualified nurse with special training and experience in child health, health promotion and health education. Every child under five years has a named Health Visitor and she can give you advice and information on health development, e.g. feeding, sleeping, communication and behaviour.
The Health Visitor can also provide you with information regarding the childhood vaccination programme. Health Visitors are also a source of information regarding local services for young children.
They run regular developmental screening of all children less than five years of age.

The information provided herein should not be used for diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.