With more than 7,000 babies delivered each year, midwives at East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust are endeavouring to ensure that mothers in the area make the most out of their service by referring online.
Ursula Marsh, Head of Midwifery, said: “Traditionally women have always gone to their GP, and we are delighted we can now offer self-referral online, making it easier and quicker for pregnant woman to start their journey with us.
“Some women might delay their bookings because they are still processing or trying to get their paper work together to register with a GP and that’s why we want to encourage them to self-refer online.”
Seeing a midwife at an early stage will ensure women are given all the information that they need right from the start to help them make the right choices. There are some routine screening tests that need to be carried out by the tenth week of pregnancy, so an early appointment with a midwife will enable women to discuss these tests and plan appropriately.
Ursula added: “The sooner the women come in for care, the sooner they get advice or any help they may require to be as healthy as possible during their pregnancy.”
By booking early pregnant women or women who are trying to get pregnant can make better use of the hospital’s specialist services.
Women will now also receive an email with details of how to register for the My Own Maternity App (MOMA). The MOMA app is a great source of information for our maternity patients and those close to them. It contains general pregnancy information, a personal appointments calendar, the trust’s maternity leaflets and useful contact numbers.
To book in for care, and to find out more, visit our Maternity page here.
