27 weeks and have only seen the midwife once

[jumblequeen]

...at my 8 week booking in appointment. I saw the doctor at 16 weeks for a check-up but other than that, nothing. My hospital (Homerton) is great once I'm actually there but from the off I've had to chase them... I finally phoned the doctor the other day (I can never get through to the ante-natal clinic) and now have an appointment with the visiting midwife at the surgery for next week. I think I must have missed 3 antenatal appointments by my reckoning (it's my first baby)... should I be worried?

Wouldn't worry about MW appointment alone until after 28 weeks (they don't do much before then).

BUT: Have you had your 12 and 20 weeks scans and any tests you are opting into?

These should have been agreed at your booking appointment, when you would have been told what appointments to make next. You have to do the chasing and appointment booking yourself - they don't, in my experience, automatically send them out. And your maternity record (handed out at booking in) should contain a schedule of AN appointment - who you should see and at how many weeks. It is it to you to make bookings to follow this schedule.

If you are in doubt at any point phone your local maternity unit rather than the GP surgery.

And when you do see the MW, ask about the HIP grant forms.

Hi. Can understand you are worried! Am also pregnant with my first (18 weeks) and have just had a look at my schedule to see what it looks like I've had that you haven't. Like you I had my booking appointment (mine was at 10 weeks) and then a check up at 16 weeks. As long as you have had your dating scan at 12 weeks and your anomaly scan at about 20 weeks, it looks like the only difference between us is that I am due to have a MW appointment at 25 weeks. I'm at the Royal Free and for a first baby the Midwife schedule is to have check ups at the following intervals:
10-12 weeks; 16 weeks; 25 weeks; 28 weeks; 31 weeks; 34 weeks; 36 weeks; 38 weeks; 40 weeks; 41 weeks. For some of these they say you can have your GP check on you - but it's still the same ante-natal check.
However, for subsequent babies they have a different schedule for MW appointments:
10-12 weeks; 16 weeks; 28 weeks; 34 weeks; 36 weeks; 38 weeks; 41 weeks.
Maybe you've been put on the wrong schedule, i.e. they have misclassified you as a subsequent baby not a first pregnancy?
I think you are absolutely right to chase this, but as long as the scans and whatever blood/urine tests have been OK, your BP has been OK and you have been feeling OK, I don't think you need to worry. But yes, make sure you are on the right schedule! Good luck and congratulations.

CurlyCaspar - midwife appointments are important before 28 weeks as pre eclampsia and other problems can start well before then.

JumpleQueen - the other posters are right, you should have been given a schedule for your midwifery appointments.

Hi all, and thanks for the advice. Just had a look at my notes - there's no schedule, and I definitely wasn't told to make the appointments myself. The only appointments I have written in are for the scans/tests - at 12 and 20 weeks... (which I had) I haven't had the results for either! I'm just worried I'm "not in the system" as such, and with it being my first baby, I just don't know what to expect. Argh.

It sounds like you haven't had very good service. You should have been told the results of the scans, although presumably if there had been a problem you would have been given a follow up.

I hope all is well when you do get to see your midwife.

Hmmm. Oh dear. Other than the first booking appointment, when I got a call from the hospital, I've had to make the appointments myself - but I've always been told to go and make an appointment in x weeks, never been the suggestion that I'm just supposed to know what appointments need making. Re the scans: didn't they say anything to you at the time? For my 12 week scan I had a report that was stapled in my maternity notes - didn't you get anything similar? Get the MW to phone the hospital and find out the results of your scans when you are with her. Should be up on the computer system and one of her colleagues at the hospital should be able to access it. Get her to check your previous bloods are all OK as well while she's at it.
Good luck.

belgo I meant that if she's generally well and has had other AN checks, she hasn't missed anything in terms of listening in to baby, fundal measurements etc. I am also 27 weeks and have seen MW twice - though I have had to phone a couple of times and had a scare myself last week. This is where I see it important to phone MWs directly rather than go through GP surgeries, which are rarelty any use!

jumble if you've had your booking in you are in the system and I'm sure you'll be back on track after your MW app next week. He/she will provide your test results. At least you have had your scans, because the timing of these is very important.

Unless you are supposed to be having high-risk consultant-led care I would not stress about it now. Be a annoyed that you were not fully informed, but please don't stress. If you generally feel well you probably are, and from now on your appointments will be frequent. Your MW will tell you at the end of each appointment what to book next.

I'm surprised there is no schedule of care in your record - I rely heavily on mine (which has more appointments, me being under the consultant)

Good luck - and do not be hurried out of the appointment. I find they always run late and don't schedule enough time. But you must make sure you understand everything this time.

You should also get your MatB1 form from her, as most employers need it from about 25 weeks to book your Maternity Leave/pay.

Good points all. I really appreciate it

At the 20 week scan the sonographer was of the opinion that if I hadn't heard back about the 12 week scan then this was a good thing as there probably wasn't anything to worry about... it would be nice to know, however!
As it happens, I'm feeling okay, so I haven't had too much cause for concern but as the weeks roll by I just want to make sure everything is in order and - as you say Curly - that I understand everything.

I'll make all of this clear at the next appointment and hope for the best. As I say, I've never had a problem at Homerton, other than the haphazard service!

Jumble Queen - in terms of "hearing back" from scans, in my experience, there is no further report from the scan itself. The Sonographer looks, assuming all is good, they say so there and then, nothing futher comes.

The only follow up is if you also had the blood tests at 12 weeks for Downs, then they ring if a problem and post non-problematic results.

Nonetheless, sounds like you need to see a MW, if only to discuss what appointments you should be having. Good luck.

I didn't get a community MW till I was 36 weeks with DD. I was referred to EPU by A&e Dr as I had symptoms of ectopic. From there I was referred to hospital MW and consultant and I had all my ante natal checks there, Due to my history I had fortnightly appointments till I was 4 months. Then monthly. When I finally got midwife I had weekly appointments with her and fortnightly with consultant.

With this one, I was told by community midwife to make an appointment at 16 weeks, I presume she will tell me when to make the following ones but don't know yet.
I am down for regular consultant checks again, so if I have community midwife appointments as well, I am constantly going to be getting checks.

Not sure what community midwife will do either, as my notes stay at the hospital I am with, and due to the layout of my village, my local hospital isn't the local hospital for surgery so midwife is based in another hospital to me.

I think every area is different tbh, and if your not a risk they don't see as often. I am high risk so I don't know the protocol for a 'normal' pregnancy sorry.

Don't know why I wrote on here really as I haven't helped at all sorry.

tablefor3 - thanks for the comment, that makes perfect sense...