Congratulations on your pregnancy. Royal Berkshire Hospital Maternity Services looks forward to helping and supporting you over the next few months as you prepare for the birth of your baby.

The midwives and doctors share a programme of regular checks on women who are pregnant, or who have recently given birth.

You will need to register your pregnancy on line at the Royal Berkshire Hospital Website by completing the below form:

• Maternity Form.

Please note that we do not routinely do tests to confirm pregnancy, as the pregnancy-testing kits available in chemists are every bit as accurate as hospital urine tests. The doctor will work out your dates, and give you some basic information, including the schedule of antenatal checks, blood tests and scans. You will then be asked to see the midwife for a ‘booking’ at 7-8 weeks (from your last period). You will be given the phone number for your allotted midwife to enable you to make this appointment.

The ‘booking’ appointment is probably the most important. It is usually an hour long and as well as providing you with a large quantity of booklets and information on your pregnancy, the midwife arranges your first blood tests (to be done at 16 weeks) and ultrasound scans (at 10 weeks and 19-20 weeks).

In an uneventful pregnancy, antenatal checks follow at 18, 24, 28, 32, 36, 38, 40 (the due date for your baby) and 41 weeks, if you get that far. The 18-week check is with the GP and subsequent checks alternate with the midwife. At each check they will test your urine for sugar and protein, do a blood pressure and check on your baby, as well as deal with any questions or problems you may have.

Please remember to bring a urine sample to each antenatal check and, if you are seeing the doctor, make sure you tell the receptionist when you book the appointment that it is for an antenatal check (antenatals are given longer appointments, and different records have to be given to the doctor).

After your baby is born, the midwife will see you both regularly for the first two weeks, and then hand over your care to your health visitor.

At about 6-8 weeks after delivery you should see the doctor for a postnatal check and your baby’s second child health check (the first is done in the first couple of days after delivery, usually by the hospital doctor).

Again, when booking this appointment, make sure you tell the receptionist it is for a postnatal check – the appointment has to be at least 30 minutes long.