When did you meet your Health Visitor?

[fruitypie]

Im 34 weeks and have read a couple of posts saying other women have had contact with their health visitor and some had already been out to visit to introduce themselves already at thIs stage. I have received nothing....is this normal?

Normally I wouldn't panic about something so trivial however this is my first baby (i had a late miscarriage a few years ago) and Ive only met my midwife twice. Every time I am booked into a routine appointment I have a different midwife as mine is always on annual leave. When I ask them questions about HV's, antenatal classes etc the poor dears never know as they are just 'filling in'. I recently had to book in a whooping cough jab after reading a bit about it but this had never been mentioned by the bevy of midwives I've met!!!

Just don't want to find out when our baby is like a month old that we should've met her like 8 times or something!!

I met my HV once we were discharged from the midwife, so DC were both about 2 weeks old.

When the midwife discharges you, after baby is 10 days old, Hv take over and visit you in your home for a few weeks then you can pop into clinic monthly to get baby weighed, or more frequently if you have concerns.

I'm 38+4 and had a phone call the end of last week from the hv at my surgery. He came round this week to ask a few basic questions and fill in some forms.
Hadn't even thought about it before that phone call!! You could always phone your surgery and ask them. Might be worth it.

I think different authority's do it differently. If it helps a HV wrote tome about going in to see them when i was 38wks. I got the letter the week before and was due to be induced on the day they wanted to meet! They weren't bothered and tbh I rarely saw them afterwards either. DS is now 19mo and we haven't been near a HV for ages!

Your midwife normally signs you over to HV care between 10 days and two weeks, you will usually see them a handful of times over the next 6 months, with reducing frequency. They're kind of your first port of call for child-related questions/issues/niggles up 'til your child goes to school. Most commonly your surgery will run baby clinics a few times a week and you can go and see them, however they should make between 4 and 6 house visits to see how you're getting on post partum - they do your PND scores and can help with feeding issues. If you're curious then give your surgery a call and ask to speak to them. Your post partum midwife cannot sign you off into anyone else's care but a health visitor, so you definitely won't fall through the cracks, fret not!
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In my NHS Trust, you have to have had your first mw appointment and been discharged from mw by 21days post birth.
I had a frantic call from mine asking to come on day 21 as she was late getting in touch after being off over christmas and new year. She literally told me to make sure I didn't forget as she HAD to see me by day 21. I was like, 'er, you left it so late to contact me....'