If your midwife is self-employed, they will attend your labour and birth. In the event that they are away or busy, they will have arranged a back-up midwife to be available instead. Make sure you know who the back-up is and how to contact them. If your midwife is a hospital-based community midwife, your labour and birth care will be provided by a hospital-based midwife. Please ensure you know the correct number to call for both your community midwife and the hospital birthing suite directly. Make sure you understand the signs of labour and when to call your midwife. Every labour and birth is different and not all go according to plan. Make sure you understand what can happen and be prepared to change your birth plan. Your midwife will talk to you about what may happen and also about what strategies you can use to manage labour pain. Some midwives provide care for women who have been given an epidural by an anaesthetist, have an oxytocin drip and abnormal fetal heart trace, others do not. Please check to see if the midwife you choose offers these services. Franklin Midwives provide continuity of care and will try hard to be with you for the labour and birth of your baby. Times when one of the midwives may not be available would be If we have provided many hours of care and your baby has yet to arrive - this is usually if a labour is slower than anticipated and your care needs the involvement of the obstetrician at Middlemore. In this situation having a very tired midwife provide your care is not ideal and we would hand over to a well rested midwife. If you have a complication which makes having an employed midwife more familiar with the level of care you require. We will try to provide support in such cases. If you are having an elective caesarean section - we will try to attend if you would like that but women in labour must take priority If you need to birth at Middlemore due to complications or an induction of labour and there are women birthing who have no complications. A lead maternity carer midwife must prioritise primary care (normal and straightforward) while secondary care can be provided by the employed midwives. If there is a woman having a primary birth, we must provide care as there is no one else to do so. If you have higher needs then the employed midwives can provide an excellent standard of care. It is important that you understand that we also support home birth and each home birth needs two midwives to be present.

Because pregnancy care is so important for your health and the health of your baby, it is free for all NZ citizens, residents and many other visa holders. Your midwife will give you advice on keeping yourself healthy in pregnancy and you will be offered regular appointments so your midwife can monitor your progress. Your midwife will be looking out for any signs that you or your baby are becoming unwell. Some conditions in pregnancy may not be obvious to the untrained eye, so attending appointments is vital. Your midwife will order blood tests and ultrasound scans as required. Please make sure you undertake these tests promptly so that any problems can be detected early. If any problems are indentified you will be referred to a hospital specialist, who will make a plan of care with you and your midwife. Your midwife will talk to you about what you want for your pregnancy and will plan your care with you. You will be asked to think about the kind of labour and birth you would like and your preferences will be recorded. It is a good idea to attend a childbirth education course, especially if this is your first baby. Franklin Midwives like to meet with you in the first trimester, usually before 10 weeks, as there are screening tests you may wish to have around 12 weeks. Following this, appointments are generally every 4 weeks to 28 weeks, every 2 weeks to 36 weeks then weekly until your baby arrives. However there are often small changes to this to accommodate your personal needs. Most antenatal care is provided at our clinic which is located upstairs at 5a Glasgow Road in Pukekohe. This is conveniently placed just off Manukau Road and opposite the newly built Franklin Hospital (no maternity services).

After the birth you will be tired and busy getting to know your new baby. Most women who have had a normal birth stay in the hospital or birth centre for 48 hours. If you have had a caesarean section, the usual hospital stay is 3-5 days. There may be an option to have your postnatal stay in a primary unit if you have given birth at hospital. Some women choose to go straight home after birth, this is called a planned early discharge. Talk to your midwife about your postnatal stay and make sure your family know what your plan is. After the birth you may be tired and busy getting to know your new baby. Many women who have had a normal birth stay in a primary birthing unit if they do not wish to go straight home. If you have had a caesarean section, the usual hospital stay is 3-5 days with the first 24 hours being at Middlemore. Some women choose to go straight home after a normal birth, this is called a planned early discharge. Talk to your midwife about your postnatal stay and make sure your family know what your plan is. There are a few things which can mean an early discharge is not the safest choice and your midwife will discuss these with you. There is no time limit on how long you are able to stay at a birthing unit. It is individualised to ensure you and baby go home when you have gained some confidence in caring for him/her. It is very important that you are able to feed your baby when you are home. Franklin Midwives will visit you daily during your stay in the primary birthing unit and will try to do the same if you are in Middlemore. We work closely with the midwifery and nursing employed staff.

Home visits provide an opportunity for you to discuss any concerns you have about your health or the health of your baby. Your midwife will assist you with breastfeeding and will monitor your baby's growth and development. Your midwife will visit you the day after you get home. You will then receive between 5 and 10 visits until your baby is around 4-6 weeks old. It is important to let your midwife know where you are, if you are planning to stay at another address after the birth. Franklin Midwives believe that postnatal care is a vital step toward successful breastfeeding, post birth recovery, emotional wellbeing and your transition to being a confident parent. As with all stages of this journey your care is individualised. If you have had a home birth we will often see you twice a day initially to make sure the initial period is going well. It is a legal requirement that we see you within the day following discharge from a birthing facility. Then we take into consideration type of birth, type of feeding and any other factors which help us know how best to tailor your care to you.

Your midwife will transfer the care of your baby to a Well Child / Tamariki Ora Service before your baby is 6 weeks old. Well Child / Tamariki Ora Health providers work with families to provide support, advice and care for all children under 5 years old. The most common Well Child / Tamariki Ora provider is Plunket but there are others in your region, ask your midwife for information about this service. All babies born in New Zealand are registered with the National Immunisation Register. To find out more about the NIR click here. It is important that you register with a local GP. If you do not have a GP or a GP for your baby, it is important to do this when you are pregnant. During your postnatal time with us - between 28 and 40 days following the birth - we will discuss your preference for Well Child Provider as well as immunisations. It is important for you to know that we support your right to choice and that choice extends to your child/children.