Your Week by Week Guide to Pregnancy care and appointments

The path from early pregnancy to birth can be very straight forward or highly complex. Your team is here to support you through your pregnancy journey no matter what twists and turns it takes to help you achieve the positive birth that’s right for you and your baby.

Midwives-

Our Midwives are highly experienced and care for you and your baby in a holistic manner encompassing your physical, mentally and emotional health.

  • Providing clinical care to assess you and your baby’s wellbeing.
  • Provide you with evidenced based information to underpin your decisions along your pregnancy journey.
  • Here to support you emotionally and to answer all of your questions.

Consultants

  • Provide fetal medicine scans
  • Consult and advise on complex pregnancy
  • Arrange elective Caesarian and Induction of Labour

Sonographers

  • Provide specialist obstetric scans for screening, anatomy, growth and 4D images.

This week-by-week guide gives you an idea of what to expect at each consultation, there are some aspects which are essential for each visit and the discussions can be tailored to your needs.

  Consultant Input/Sonographer Scan Midwife Support
Week 4-7 At this stage it would be too early to see a heartbeat on a scan. However your Doctor may need to see you if you have underlying health conditions, such as Thyroid disease that need early monitoring and assessment. If you have any pain or bleeding in this time we are here to help you access the care you need. Early pregnancy can be an anxiety provoking time and we are here to support and hopefully alleviate any worries. Your named midwife can answer questions regarding diet, exercise, prenatal supplements and any other questions you have.
Week 7-9 Viability Scan. Nausea and Vomiting Assessment and any Medications prescribed 1st Antenatal Check*. Important to gauge your baseline assessments of blood pressure and BMI
Week 10-11 NIPT screening Midwife present for support
Week 12-13 Offered in the NHS Dating scan. This scan is the best time to date your pregnancy and give you an accurate due date. The Nuchal fold (back of the baby’s neck) will also be measured as an important part of screening baby’s wellbeing Once you have had your choice of screening between 10-12 weeks your midwife will organise your booking appointment either within the NHS or at The Portland London *Booking Appointment
Week 14-16 Booking blood review. Early Anomaly Scan Your bloods, whether taken by us for The Portland or by the NHS, will be reviewed by your Midwife. Any abnormalities will be reviewed by our Doctors and appropriately actioned. Full Antenatal check of Mum and Baby  
Week 18-21 Offered in the NHS Anomaly Scan- A detailed top to toe examination of your baby Full Antenatal check of Mum and Baby. If your anomaly scan is done by the NHS your named midwife will review this and explain the findings fully. MATB1 issued
23-25 weeks Reassurance Scan. Full check of baby, growth, liquor etc. The scan includes a specific check of the function of the uterine arteries. This is a measurement used to predict babies growth and your chances of developing pre-eclampsia Full Antenatal check of Mum and Baby with GTT (Glucose Test) if required. This is a good time to see our Women’s Physio Specialist. Management of posture, pelvic floor, hip and back problems at this stage can help you have a comfortable pregnancy.
28 week Reassurance scan with 4D images Full Antenatal check of Mum and Baby. Blood tests for Anaemia
31-33 weeks Growth Scan. Growth scans are best done as a minimum of 2 scans, 2 weeks apart. This tells us if your baby has grown as expected between scans. If there are concerns about your babies growth you may need to be delivered sooner than expected. Our Consultants will action this finding with the Hospital you are delivering with. Full Antenatal check of Mum and Baby. *Birth preparation and Parent education discussion. Start *Hypnobirth classes.
34-36 weeks Growth Scan Full Antenatal check of Mum and Baby. Women’s physio consultation for birth preparation or Caesarian section recovery
37- 38 weeks Transfer to The Portland or Growth Scan at Alderley Edge Full Antenatal check of Mum and Baby. Group B Strep screening if you are having a normal delivery.
39-40 El c/s or home visit from your named midwife Full Midwife Check up of Mum and Baby. Complementary Therapies used to make sure your body and baby are ready for labour.
41 weeks   Home visit. At this appointment you will be offered a sweep. Your midwife will be able to discuss this in full and help you decide if it is right for you. Induction of labour discussed and planned if Natural labour does not commence
4-6 weeks After Birth Debrief with your Consultant. An essential opportunity to discuss your birth, family planning, wound healing. This concludes your pregnancy care Postnatal Check up for Mum and Baby. Including baby’s weight. Blood tests for mum if required.

*Booking Appointment. This is often the first visit you will have within the NHS. Even if you are choosing to have your baby at The Portland every pregnant woman needs to be booked at a local NHS hospital for 24 hour emergency access if required. The booking visit involves taking a comprehensive history about you – covering health, previous surgery, any medical conditions as well as family history. We also calculate you BMI which helps us assess who is most suitable to manage your care: midwives or doctors. You will have comprehensive blood tests to assess your iron count, blood group, rhesus antibodies and HIV status etc.

*Antenatal Check ups. These are an essential part of your pregnancy care and are integral no matter how many scans you choose to have. Your midwife will monitor Blood pressure, Maternal Pulse, Oxygen saturation, carbon monoxide levels, Urinalysis, Abdominal palpation and measurement for size and position of baby, Fetal heart auscultation using a Doppler and discuss baby’s movements with you.

*Parent Education. This will occur as and when you require, as questions and ailments arise. At different stages we will discuss topics such as birth preferences, delayed cord clamping, water birth, home birth, skin to skin, Pain relief, placenta encapsulation and Aromatherapy for use in labour.

*Hypnobirth/Birth Preparation classes. If you and your birth partners would prefer more in-depth information in the form of classes these can be arranged through our Midwives. Hypnobirth has been found to be the best birth preparation for Mums aiming for normal deliveries. It increases your chance of having a Vaginal delivery from 65% to 85%. Statistics also show that women who use Hypnobirth require less intervention and less pain relief. We offer group classes in Hypnobirth as well as one to one sessions of Hypnobirth and Parent Education at your home for flexibility.

Clinic Locations

Visit our clinic in Central London and Cheshire

LONDON CLINIC

Ground Floor,
32 Wimpole Street
London W1G 8GT

Nearest Underground Tube Stations

Bond Street
Oxford Circus

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CHESHIRE CLINIC

Alderley Edge Medical Centre, Talbot Road, Alderley Edge,
Cheshire, SK9 7HR

Nearest Overground Train Station Alderley Edge

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Wimpole Street, London

The Birth Company
Ground Floor
32 Wimpole Street
London
W1G 8GT

020 7725 0528
[email protected]

Wimpole Street, London Opening Times

Mon 08:00 - 20:00
Tue 08:00 - 20:00
Wed 08:00 - 20:00
Thu 08:00 - 20:00
Fri 08:00 - 18:00
Sat 09:00 - 16:00
Sun 10:00 - 14:00

Alderley Edge, Cheshire

The Birth Company
Alderley Edge Medical Centre,
Talbot Road,
Alderley Edge
Cheshire
SK9 7HR

01625 70 40 80
[email protected]

Alderley Edge, Cheshire Opening Times

Mon 09:00 - 17:00
Tue 09:00 - 17:00
Wed 09:00 - 17:00
Thu 09:00 - 17:00
Fri 09:00 - 17:00
Sat 09:00 - 16:00 (On selected dates)
Sun Closed
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