As Soon As You Are Pregnant
Once you find out you are pregnant register your pregnancy and sign up for My Pregnancy Notes and book your first midwife appointment before 10 week via our Patient Access Centre: 0151 702 4352.
In the early stages of pregnancy, it’s important to take care of yourself and your baby. By following these simple tips, you can ensure a healthy and happy pregnancy.
If you’re pregnant you will be offered screening tests to check on your health, and your baby’s health. Some screening tests should ideally be done before 10 weeks of pregnancy. This is because further tests may be needed, and decisions made about ongoing care.
These tests are usually done by the midwife taking a blood sample. So as soon as you know you’re pregnant, please contact us book your first appointment with the team:
Patient Access Centre
Tel: 0151 702 4352
If you are not already taking supplements such as folic acid (ideally 12 weeks before you get pregnant), start taking them now. You should also take vitamin D.
The NHS has more information about what vitamins you can take in pregnancy.
Find out more
The Healthy Start Scheme
Available if you need help to buy vitamins, food, or milk
Find out more
Protect your baby from tobacco smoke to give them the healthiest start in life.
Help and support is available to you if you find it difficult to stop.
Self refer and speak to the smoking team email smokingcessationservice
Or call the National Smokefree Pregnancy Helpline on 0300 123 1044.
Find out more
A healthy diet is an important part of a healthy lifestyle at any time but is especially vital if you’re pregnant or planning a pregnancy. Eating healthily during pregnancy will help your baby to develop and grow. There are some food you can and can’t eat.
NHS advice about having a healthy diet in pregnancy
Find out more
Food to avoid in pregnancy
Find out more
If you’re pregnant or planning to become pregnant, do not drink alcohol. This will reduce any risk to your baby.
Drinking alcohol whilst you are pregnant can harm your baby, and the more you drink, the greater the risk.
Drinking alcohol during pregnancy also increases the risk of having a miscarriage, premature birth or your baby having a low birth weight.
If you drink alcohol during your pregnancy your baby could develop a serious life-long condition called fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.The NHS has more information about fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and the services available to help you stop drinking if you need them.
Find out more
If you’re pregnant and struggling with an alcohol problem, please speak to your midwife or doctor as soon as possible. Help and support is available to you from many sources including #DRYMESTER – a website designed especially to help parents-to-be go alcohol free.
Find out more
Screening Vaccinations
Screening in early pregnancy is important.
If you’re pregnant you will be offered screening tests to check on your health, and your baby’s health. These tests are usually carried out by a midwife.
Some screening tests should ideally be done before 10 weeks of pregnancy. This is because further tests may be needed, and decisions made about ongoing care.
So as soon as you know you’re pregnant, please contact your local midwife service and book your first appointment with them.
Vaccinations
If you’re pregnant and booked with Liverpool Women’s Hospital you can get your free flu, whopping cough and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccination to protect you and your baby at our Obstetric Day Unit. RSV is a serious chest infection from 28 weeks plus gestation.
We offer a drop-in service but in order to ensure a member of staff is available when you attend you can email: vaccines@lwh.nhs.uk to arrange a day and time that works for you.
Your first midwife appointment
Your first appointment with a midwife may take place at a GP surgery, children’s centre, at home or at a hospital. It depends on the services available where you live.
At this appointment you will receive standard health checks, for example have your blood pressure taken. You will also be offered a number of screening tests.
These tests are usually done by the midwife taking a blood sample.
What tests are included within the screening process?
During pregnancy, screening tests typically include ultrasound scans, blood tests, or a combination of both. Ultrasound scans can detect conditions such as spina bifida, while blood tests screen for genetic conditions such as sickle cell anaemia and thalassaemia as well as infections like HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis.
These tests should be done before 10 weeks for optimal effectiveness. Between 11 and 14 weeks, blood tests combined with scans assess the likelihood of Down’s syndrome, Edwards’ syndrome, or Patau’s syndrome; participation in these tests is optional.
Find out more
More information
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Liverpool Women’s University Hospital
Address: Liverpool Women’s University Hospital
Crown Street
Liverpool
L8 7SS
- Anaesthesia – Body Mass Index LWH
- Epidurals in Labour LWH
- Asprin in Pregnancy
- Birth Place Decisions
- Caring for my Caesarean Section Wound after Delivery
- Contaception after having a baby
- Corticosteroid treatment in Hyperemesis gravidarum
- Dichorionic Diamniotic (DCDA) Booklet
- Fetal Growth Clinic: When your baby is smaller than expected
- Having a C Section
- High Blood Pressure and Pre-eclampsia
- Induction of Labour
- Intrauterine contraception (IUC) insertion at the time of Caesarean birth
- Latent Phase of Labour LWH
- Low Pregnancy Associated Plasma Protein-A
- Monochorionic Diamniotic
- Obstetric Cholestasis LWH
- Omega 3 for women attending the preterm birth prevention clinic
- Postnatal Analgesia
- Pre-eclampsia LWH
- Pre Term Labour LWH
- Preventing a pressure ulcer during delivery
- Regional Anaesthesia for Caesarean Section LWH
- Stopping Smoking in Pregnancy
- Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome
Birthing Partner Visiting
Birthing partner visiting is permitted between the hours of 8am-11pm.
If a woman births during the night her partner will be allowed to accompany her to Maternity Base to help settle mum and baby, this will be for one hour. It will be at the discretion of the ward manager on shift to allow partners to stay overnight in exceptional circumstances.
Visiting Hours
Visiting times for visitors, including only own children are between 3pm-8pm.
Delivery Suite and Midwifery Led Unit
The Delivery Suite and MLU do not have 'visiting times', but two birthing partners are permitted to accompany you throughout your labour.
Visitors to Delivery Suite and Maternity Base
We are so grateful to everyone who visits our Maternity Unit for helping us create a calm, welcoming and secure space for our mums, dads and babies ❤️
To help keep our Delivery Suite and Maternity Base as safe as possible, we kindly ask that visitors and staff:
- Do not hold the door open for anyone else to come through. Although this may feel polite, it may pose a risk to some of our families and staff.
- It is important that each visitor is buzzed in by the ward staff so we know exactly who is on the ward at any time.
- If you are ever unsure, or if someone does slip through, please speak to a member of the team, we are always here to help.
These small steps go a long way in helping us protect all the families in our care, and we really appreciate your support and understanding.
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As soon As You Are Pregnant
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Antenatal Care
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MAMAFIT
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Midwife at Home
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Non-English Speaking Team (NEST)
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Postnatal Care
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Honeysuckle Bereavement Service
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Specialist Maternity
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Continuity of Carer
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Feeding your baby
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Who to contact if you feel unwell or are concerned
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Liverpool Maternity and Neonatal Voices Partnership
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Maternity facts