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Sage Femme have the safety of our clients as a top priority. Unfortunately, that means that we have had to make changes to the way we give care. This is under constant review. Currently hospitals are saying that women can have one non-interchangeable birth partner and therefore we are not able to accompany you into hospital unless we are in place of another birth partner. We can however do early labour home assessments and provide you with telephone support once you are in hospital.
We would request that you let us know if you or anyone in your household has symptoms so that we can avoid visiting at this time. If you have Covid symptoms or test positive it will be recommended that you have a hospital birth and unfortunately you will not be able to have a birth partner with you.
Our midwives will be wearing full protective equipment for appointments in your home. If you would prefer to have the reassurance of video appointments instead we can organise them in place of physical appointments if that will not negatively impact on your pregnancy. In the event that further assessment is necessary, we will liaise with your booked hospital to ensure that you get the required follow up. We will help you to make the right decisions regarding attendance at the hospital. The NHS is understandably under exceptional strain and we would like to reduce further stress on their systems and risk to you from this contagious virus by reducing unnecessary hospital attendance.
The time after your baby’s birth is often not considered much because of natural concerns about keeping your baby safe during pregnancy and getting it out. It is such an important element of your care though. At its worst, labour lasts two or three days but looking after your baby is for life!
Not only is there your physical recovery to consider but you also have to quickly become skilled at a brand-new job. Some of you may have had babies already or may have been in regular contact with them but for many of you it may be your first proper contact with a newborn human being.
NHS postnatal care has been heavily reduced over the years and many new parents feel helpless and abandoned. This can have such a detrimental impact on the start of your time as a family.
Babies are not all the same but with the right guidance and support you will quickly learn what your baby likes and doesn’t. If we can help you be calm and relaxed your baby will too. They are very intuitive and often become stressed if they pick up anxiety and tension.
In London, many people live far from the support of family and friends and it can feel very isolating particularly when sleep deprived and sore. We come to see you at home from the first day at home and make sure that you have all the information needed about feeding and keeping your baby safe. We also make sure that you are recovering and healing well and will advise about diet, supplements and pain relief.
As the days and weeks go by you will have many questions. We are there to answer those and put you at your ease. We can ensure that you are feeling emotionally supported and we can help detect early signs of postnatal depression ensuring that you get the right help quickly.
We will be monitoring your baby’s feeding and weight gain as well as assessing any jaundice and advising you about what tests your baby may need moving forward and about the role of the Health Visitor once our visits have finished.
Our aim is to see you enjoying this time with your little one, it should be a time of joy and excitement and we will do what we can to make it more than just an exercise in survival. You will be able to contact us day and night with any concerns between appointments.