Prenatal Care Appointments
Born Midwives will generally see clients for their first prenatal appointment sometime between 8 and 10 weeks of pregnancy. Following your first appointment, you will be seen about every 4-5 weeks until you are 28 weeks, then every 2-3 weeks until you are 36 weeks, then weekly until you have your baby.
During regularly scheduled visits to our midwifery clinic, midwives provide physical assessments, prenatal education, informed choice discussions and decision support. Physical examinations include taking clients’ blood pressure, measuring growth and listening to the fetal heart rate. Our experienced midwives will provide requisitions for labwork and ultrasounds as required.
Once your baby is born, we will see you and your baby at home or in the hospital at least 2-3 times in the first week. We will then see you and your baby in our clinic environment at 2, 4, and 6 weeks postpartum.
Following your last visit, we will recommend that you schedule a well-baby check-up with your family physician. Clinic appointments are typically 30 minutes in length other than your first appointment, which is longer.
*It’s always a good idea to call us as soon as you know you are pregnant to be sure there is availability and get your name on our client list or our waiting list.*
Surrogacy
If you are planning a surrogacy, we will discuss your plans regarding the intended parents throughout the pregnancy. We will also offer the intended parents the option to do virtual visits alone if they wish to discuss their needs and concerns to prepare them for their journey to parenthood.
Previous Practitioner
If you have seen a family physician or another midwife for part of your prenatal care, it is very important we receive copies of your health records from them. This includes all blood work, urine tests, pap smear results, and ultrasounds that were done. Obtaining these records ensures that we have a complete record of your care, and that you are not subjected to unnecessary or duplicate blood draws or other tests. We will request that you sign a medical records release so that we can obtain these from your previous care provider.
What if your pregnancy becomes high-risk?
Midwives provide complete care to clients who experience healthy, normal pregnancies. If you develop obstetrical problems or a medical condition that are beyond your midwife’s scope of care, you and your midwife will determine the appropriate source for your ongoing care.
Your midwife may recommend a consultation with an obstetrician or other specialist to gain recommendations as to how to best provide safe care for you and your baby. In the vast majority of consultations, your care remains with your midwife with recommendations from the consultant.
In rare circumstances, your care may be transferred during your pregnancy to the consultant. While this would mean your care would continue under the consultant, your midwife will offer you supportive prenatal care via virtual visits (Zoom or by phone check in), offer to provide labour support, and be present at the birth and provide immediate postpartum care (if occurring at Cambridge Memorial Hospital). In most instances, your care would be transferred back to your midwife within hours of your birth. Your midwife will also offer to provide routine postpartum care for both you and your baby until 6 weeks.
All Families Welcome
