36 week home visit from Midwife

[Rebaby]

Did anyone have one of these, and what can i expect?

I have a caseholding student (final year student midwife) who is always accompanied by a qualified midwife, and last time i saw her she said she'll be doing the visit and that it's mainly to discuss homebirth and find out what we want for the birth At my last appointment both my student and her mentor were very enthusiastic about the idea of a homebirth so hopefully we won't be facing any negativity.

So i have prepared a loooooong list of questions to ask, but other than me asking them lots and lots of silly questions i am wondering what else the visit will involve?

Do you think they will want to check out our house to do a risk assessment? Will they drop the homebirth kit off at this appointment or does that not happen until later? OH can't be home for the appointment unfortunately so i'll have Toby running around during it, but i figure at least he can't cause as much trouble here as he can when i have to take him with me to clinic?!

Anyone have any ideas what else the appointment might involve?

Also if anyone can think of any really important questions i should definitely remember to ask then let me know in case i haven't thought of them!

 

[mrs_lukey]

I am collecting a "birthing box" from the maternity unit when I have my 36 week antenatal appt and my midwife said they'll do a home visit that week too but it hasn't been booked in yet.

She said that the main thing for the home visit is to check that the house is safe for the baby to be born in - ie not derelict and if works are being done at all that there are no dangerous things going on like exposed wiring or unsupported walls etc. She said they went to a house once where they had no stairs but were using a ladder and she had to turn it down as the only toilet was upstairs and use of the ladder during labour/with a newborn would not be ideal!!

 

[Coffee Lover]

I would be interested to know this as well, I have my home visit next Tuesday for my home birth...

 

[clarsair]

At mine she went through things I could/couldn't have (ie epidural etc), asked about other children, pets, any preferences for where in the house I wanted to be, types of pain relief, what they'd do in the event of complications, what I wanted following the birth, who would be with me, parking for other midwives - basically a run through of what would happen. She didn't need to look around the house though.

 

[wigglywoo]

Mine came round last week and just went through my birth plan with me and talked about the things that she had to (not NHS guidelines to use a cord tie instead of a clamp, what *might* happen if baby needed resus and had a short cord). I said that we would be moving a sofa out of the front room to allow more space for the birth pool and she asked if we were leaving the table in as that would be useful to put their equipment on. She asked if the woodburner would be lit (erm, depends on whether it's cold!), where the water for the pool would be coming from and told me who and when to call when in labour but that was it really.

She's treating me a little differently since I've started declining checks and tests (not unpleasantly, just that she's asking if it's ok to do things, if I would like things, when I want to see her etc). There was certainly no 'you must do this' or 'you can't do that'. I think she can tell I am well researched

 

[xxembobxx]

parking for other midwives

I didn't even think about parking - this could be an issue as we only have limited parking for visitors and they are very rarely free. I suppose I could move our car out which would leave space for 2 visitors cars.

Looking forward to a homebirth but there really is quite a bit to think about!

 

[sam#3]

ive got mine next thurs and she will just discuss the birth plan and give me the rota i think. ive never been given a home birth kit and i dont use g&a so i dont think ill have anything left here.
we will just talk about who will be here, where the pool will be here, our wants for the birth etc.

 

[HayleyJA]

My midwife was lovely when she came out. It really was an informal chat, just to clarify:
- How/why we'd be transferred (as in for what reasons and also told it was policy for an ambulance to be called etc)
- What pain relief is available (if I wanted pethidine or similar I'd need to be prescribed it my my GP in advance and as it's a controlled drug it'd need to be stored in a locked cupboard etc. Needless to say I don't want it and don't feel home would be the right place for me if I was considering it.)
- Who attends (our MW's work in pairs from the outset)
- Practicalities, like setting up a clear table with good lighting etc in case of emergency, using plastic sheeting over soft furnishings, parking/access, telephone signal (we're not out in the sticks but they always like to know that an ambulance could be called!)

She didn't write anything in my notes during this appointment, and I didn't have to sign anything - it was very informal and relaxed.

All in all, I found it to be a very positive and exciting appointment.

 

[Rebaby]

Thanks for the replies everyone

I'll update tomorrow and let you know how it goes

 

[shelleney]

How did it go Rebaby?

 

[Rebaby]

How did it go Rebaby?

Updated my journal but totally forgot to update here Thanks for asking anyway

It went really well It was my student mw and the mw who was supervising her at my last appointment (who i think is her mentor actually) so two familiar faces, which was nice.

I poas for them as they didn't have any urine specimen pots so had to pee directly on to the testing strip and wave it in front of their noses They checked my bp with a portable electronic machine which blew up so tight i thought my arm might fall off. The reading came back as 160/95 (As a point of reference- my bp is usually around 110/70!) They both just looked at each other and then my student mw said "I think i'll check that again manually!" which she did, and it was actually 119/75! The mw said that the other machine should probably be thrown away as it was from "the dark ages" They measured FH (35cms) and checked baby's position (head down, not engaged but "at the brim", and his body up my left hand side and bum at the top of my bump) and listened in with the doppler when they finally retrieved it from Toby who was having real fun pressing all the buttons His HR was lovely loud and clear

My student mw then asked about our ideas for the birth and if we were still wanting a homebirth, so i said yes and showed her my birth plan. They read it together and said that all sounded fine

She said they would fetch the gas and air on the day and that they can always get more cylinders so there's no limit on how much i can use. She asked if i had any particular needs re: the natal hypnotherapy, if they needed to change their language (e.g. "contractions" to "surges" like they do in hypnobirthing) but i said not necessarily- it's more about breathing and visualisation on my part and for them not to interrupt me!

I asked them loooooooads of questions and they answered them all. (Things like- under what circumstances would they recommend transferring in? If my waters break at the start of labour again this time, how long would they give me before recommending a transfer? What happens with partners if i need to transfer? Do they advise getting out of the pool for the 3rd stage? Are all the MW's on the team experienced in water birth? What happens re: newborn checks/hearing screening after a HB etc etc etc)

They wrote the number for the radio room on the front of my notes and told me to call that when i think labour has started (although oddly told me to ring triage if my waters break- which IS how my labour started last time?! ) and they said they'd see me in two weeks (but as she stood up my student mw said "if you get that far- maybe we'll see you before!" )

They'll go on call for my homebirth as of next Friday (when i officially become 37 weeks/full term) and will be able to support me at home until term plus 13 days (i.e. two weeks overdue) but i am soooo hoping not to get that far (PLEASE! ) They're going to drop a homebirth box off at some point next week, which will just have some basics in, like sterile dressing packs for e.g. but no sharps, those all come with whoever turns up on the day (along with the gas and air)

It was all very positive really After they left of course i thought of a couple more things to ask, but that's always the way isn't it? I've written them down for my next appointment anyway!

 

[shelleney]

Aww, glad everything went so well Rebaby

And thanks for the info on what to expect - i have my apt next Friday, and now I feel more prepared.

Good luck!!

 

[sam#3]

glad it went well hun x