prenatal ...

Prenatal care plays an important role in preventing and detecting problems which can arise in pregnancy.  Our care includes the monitoring of fetal growth, fetal heart rate and position, urinalysis, blood pressure, and the general health of mother and baby.  We can provide counselling and advice on pregnancy testing, discomforts, and the social and emotional aspects of pregnancy.  Your partner is welcome to attend the visits with you and we request that partners attend at least once.  If you are planning siblings to participate at the birth, please have them attend the visits on occasion. Appointments are 45 minutes long and are scheduled in the following manner:

• Every four weeks until 28 weeks of pregnancy
• Every two weeks until 36 weeks of pregnancy
• Every week until birth

A midwife is available to you by pager, 24 hours a day for urgent pregnancy concerns.

If a medical concern arises at any time during your care, your midwife will consult the appropriate specialist.

Labour and Birth ...

During labour the midwife will assess your progress, monitor your vital signs, monitor fetal heart rate and assist in the birth of the infant and placenta, examine the baby and assess the mother’s condition postpartum.  We also offer emotional support, information and guidance to the woman and her family.  The second midwife attends the birth for the second stage of labour, birth and immediate postpartum.

Postpartum Care ...

We make at least four postnatal visits as needed in the first two weeks after delivery.  The first three visits are provided to you at home or in hospital; the fourth visit usually takes place at our clinic. We will help you with breastfeeding, newborn bath and care, as well as the newborn screening test and infant hearing test.

If you give birth in the hospital and baby and mom are both stable, you may go home within 2-3 hours. We return within 24 hours for the first home visit.

Should any problems arise, we are available on a 24 hour on-call basis.  A final six week checkup with mother and baby takes place at our clinic.  A summary of your course of care is then sent to your family physician/ nurse practitioner.

A midwife is a registered health care professional who provides primary care to low-risk women throughout their pregnancy, labour and birth and provides care to both mother and baby during the first six weeks following the birth.

Uxbridge Community Midwives is located in Uxbridge, Ontario.  We offer services to women living in Uxbridge and surrounding communities, including Markham, Stouffville, Mount Albert to Keswick and the South Shores of Lake Simcoe over to Port Perry.

We attend births at home, or at Markham-Stouffville Hospital.

There is no cost to you for midwifery care  –  it is covered by the Ministry of Health  and Long Term Care.  You may call at any time during your pregnancy, but it is best to call early . It is not necessary to get a doctor’s referral to our office.