How often will I see my midwife?
Your midwife will be one of the most important people you see during your pregnancy, at your labour and for a short period, postnatally.
She will usually be your first port of call for information as your pregnancy develops, and she will be able to advise you on all aspects of pregnancy, labour, birth and looking after your baby.
The relationship you have with your midwife or independent midwife is an incredibly important one; they are there to help you to make informed choices about your antenatal and labour care, carry out examinations, provide you with information and generally help to educate parents-to-be.
Guidelines from the NHS’ National Institute of Clinical Excellence, (NICE) suggest that for a woman who has never given birth before, she should expect a schedule of 10 antenatal appointments, and a woman who has, will probably receive a schedule of 7 antenatal appointments.
Generally speaking, these appointments will occur at 12, 16, 20, 25, 28, 31, 34, 36, 38, 40 and 41 weeks. You should receive a timetable for these at the beginning of your pregnancy and if you wanted to speak to your midwife outside of this time, you should have access to her.
Typically your antenatal appointments will take place at:
8-12 weeks
Lots of women are offered a scan at their first antenatal visit or booking in visit. This
scan measures the baby’s size to work out how many weeks pregnant you
are. It may also show up if you are expecting twins or multiples.
11-14 weeks
You may be offered a nuchal fold translucency scan, for the early
detection of Downs Syndrome. Not all women are offered this scan,
although most women over 35 are.
18-20 weeks
All women are
offered a scan at this stage in the pregnancy, and it is sometimes
referred to as the foetal anomaly scan. The sonographer will be able to
get a clear view of your baby’s organs and development, and can pick up
on any abnormalities at this stage.
Most women won’t have any more
scans after this, but some women are offered a 30 week scan which can
help to detect placental problems, growth retardation and the volume of
amniotic fluid.
Later antenatal checks:
25 weeks
Around
weeks 24-28 most women will be offered a glucose tolerance test as part
of their antenatal appointment. This test involves drinking a glucose
mixture and then having your blood tested
over a period of several hours afterwards. If Gestational Diabetes is suspected before this time, a
glucose tolerance test may be given to you as early as 16 weeks,
although it is the hormonal changes and therefore hormones made by the
placenta to resist insulin, along with the growth demands of your baby
in the second and third trimesters which can cause a woman's insulin
levels to become unbalanced.
From
24 weeks onwards you will be offered an antenatal check every month
until 34 weeks where depending on your pregnancy you may be offered an
antenatal test every two weeks. Once you get to the end of your
pregnancy you will be offered a check every week, just to check on how
you and your baby are doing.
The information in this feature is intended for
educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your health, the
health of your child or the health of someone you know, please consult with a
doctor or other healthcare professional.
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Last Modified: 18/06/2007
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