Specialist Maternity Services consists of Dr Valerie Schenk (Obstetrician/Gynaecologist), and midwives.
Dr Schenk will be the woman's Lead Maternity Carer, and as such is responsible for her care.
ANTENATAL: Dr Schenk will see the woman at about 10 to 12 weeks, at about 14 weeks and then at about 20 weeks. Appointments are then 4 weekly until 28 weeks, 2 weekly until 36 weeks and then weekly until term.
Each woman is allocated a midwife from the Practice, who will provide her midwifery antenatal and postnatal care. The first midwife appointment is at about 17 weeks. From then the woman will see Dr Schenk and the midwife alternately. This allows the midwife and the woman to build a relationship that will continue through the pregnancy and the postnatal period.
Dr Schenk will see her more often if necessary.
Twice a month we have a tour of the hospital so that couples can familiarise themselves with the obstetric area.
On Call: Dr Schenk is on call 24/7. If she is unavailable she will have another obstetrician covering for her. The midwife is on call for her from 0800 on a Monday until 1700 on Friday (24 hours a day). One of our midwives is then rostered to be on call over each weekend. The name and number of the midwife on call will be on the woman's allocated midwife's mobile phone.
LABOUR and BIRTH: When she is in labour the woman phones her allocated midwife who will then contact Dr Schenk and the Delivery Suite at the hospital. We have midwives in our Practice who look after the woman during her labour and birth. Dr Schenk will be responsible for her care, will see her regularly throughout the labour and will be present to deliver the baby. If she is unavailable she will have arranged for another obstetrician to be there.
POSTNATAL: The allocated midwife will visit and care for the family in their home for 4 to 6 weeks after the birth. The number of visits depends on the needs of the mother and baby.
There will be a final appointment with Dr Schenk at about 6 weeks postnatal.
There will also be a paediatric check for the baby at 4 to 6 weeks.
Our Team
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What is Obstetrics?
Obstetrics is the area of medicine concerned with the treatment of women during pregnancy (antenatal), labour and delivery, and the time after childbirth (postnatal). Once pregnancy has been confirmed, regular antenatal checks should be performed by a midwife, GP or obstetrician (doctor who is specialised in obstetrics). In the first 28 weeks, these checks will be done every month but will increase as the pregnancy progresses.