Midwifery Services
We believe that it is important to offer parents-to-be an informed choice, both in the type of birthing care you receive: either consultant-led or midwife-led through to the type of birth: from a natural delivery with or without an epidural, through to caesarean section or water birth. Depending on your individual birthing requirements we offer a range of care packages to suit your needs
Once your baby is born we offer evidence-based advice on feeding and caring for your newborn as well as postnatal exercises and paediatric services.
Midwifery-Led Care
Based within the hospital’s Maternal and Fetal Wellbeing Centre, the midwifery-led service is a dynamic service provided by a small team of friendly and committed midwives offering a welcoming and relaxed environment for women with uncomplicated pregnancies.
Parents-to-be benefit from continuity of care: from antenatal care, through to labour and delivery and on to post-natal care – which allows you to develop a close relationship with the midwifery team. There is also the additional reassurance that if needed, parents have immediate access to the full Portland Hospital maternity services including a high dependency unit and special or neonatal care for baby all under the same roof. You also have full access to our resident consultant anaesthetist for pain relief options.
Women choosing a midwifery-led care package undergo an assessment process to ensure that their pregnancy is considered ‘low-risk’. Although in the event that during the birth it becomes clear that a natural delivery is no longer possible our resident obstetric RMO and on-call consultant obstetrician will immediately become involved to ensure the safe delivery of baby and your wellbeing.
The complete midwifery package includes all antenatal appointments with the midwives, three ultrasound scans and all blood tests as routinely required. The midwives are available on-call 24 hours a day for advice throughout pregnancy and for delivery. The package includes a 48 hour stay in hospital, inclusive of accommodation and midwifery charges, based on the time of admission and a consultation with a Physiotherapist.
Late bookings are accepted onto the midwifery-led care package as long as you bring your NHS or equivalent antenatal medical records.
In the unlikely event that a complication arises during birth, The Portland Hospital has immediate access to a dedicated emergency delivery theatre, consultant anaesthetists and theatre team along with critical care facilities which are second to none. Indeed, our neonatal intensive care and special care baby units are right here in the hospital and both have the most sophisticated systems available to monitor and care for babies who have complications. The units are managed by consultant neonatologists and a highly skilled specialist nurse team.
Should you need any assistance or wish to book a tour, then please contact The Portland Hospital Maternity Enquiry Line +44 (0) 20 7390 6068.
Pain relief to suit you
All forms of birthing pain relief are available at The Portland Hospital. Parents-to-be may be referred by their consultant obstetrician or midwifery team to meet a consultant anaesthetist prior to delivery if they need or wish to discuss pain relief options for the big day. One of our resident consultant anaesthetists will undertake an assessment and advise you on the best options for pain relief to meet your individual needs.
Paediatric care to follow
All babies born at The Portland Hospital receive a full paediatric review prior to discharge by a consultant paediatrician. Many parents then choose to follow on with paediatric care for their child at the Portland. The Portland Hospital is also the UK’s largest Independent Children’s Hospital devoted to caring for babies and children up to the age of 16 years.
