Antenatal care is the care and help you receive from health professionals during the course of your pregnancy. It is important that you take good care of your own health and that of your unborn baby during pregnancy and making the most of the antenatal care available to you is a big part of that.
As soon as you find out that you are pregnant you should get in touch with your GP or midwife to get information on the services and support that are available and to organise antenatal care. This will include:
- antenatal appointments – regular health appointments with your midwife or doctor to check your health and the development of your baby,
- antenatal screening – tests that assess whether your unborn baby is at risk of certain conditions or abnormalities, and
- antenatal classes – classes and workshops that prepare you and your partner for the birth of your baby.
Antenatal appointments are check-ups to assess the health of you and your baby. They give the opportunity for you to find out more about the care on offer, and also to discuss any issues and questions you have. For more information, see Health A-Z: antenatal appointments.
This topic gives an overview of some of the issues that women face during pregnancy. This includes changes to lifestyle, including diet, common health problems, coping with work and antenatal classes.
These issues can also be discussed with your midwife at antenatal appointments.
Your antenatal notes
At your booking appointment, usually the second meeting you have with your midwife, all your details will be entered into a record book. These are your antenatal notes which will be added to at each appointment you have. You will be asked to look after your notes. If you go away from home you should take your notes with you, so if you need medical attention you will have the information that is needed.
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