Early Transfer Home

The midwife will

• Call to see you in your home for four visits
• Transfer your care to the General Practitioner (GP) and Public Health Nurse on day 5

Follow up care

• Your baby will have a GP check up at 2 & 6 weeks old
• You will have a GP check up at 6 weeks after birth.

Healthy babies

• have normal colour for their ethnicity, (no jaundice within 24 hours of age)
• maintain a stable body temperature
• pass urine and meconium/stools
• initiate feeds, suck well on the breast (or bottle) and settle between feeds (feeds at least 10-12 times in 24 hours if breastfeeding & 6-8 times in 24 hours if artificial feeding)
• NOT be excessively irritable, tense, sleepy or floppy

Safe Sleep for babies

• The safest place for the baby to sleep is in the cot, in your bedroom
• Place the baby on his/her back with feet to the bottom of the cot
• Don’t smoke or allow anyone to smoke in the home
• Don’t fall asleep in bed with your baby if you or your partner have taken alcohol
• Use cellular blankets, avoid cot bumpers, duvets or baby nests
• Don’t let your baby get too hot or too cold, room temp between 16˚-20˚C.

You may contact your GP or Hospital if you experience

• Sudden and profuse blood loss or persistent increased blood loss or pass blood clots from the vagina
• Fever >38˚C, shivering, flu-like symptoms, abdominal pain and/or offensive vaginal loss
• Headaches accompanied by visual disturbances and/or nausea & vomiting
• Leg/Calf pain with redness or swelling
• Shortness of breath or chest pain.
• Feel unwell in any other way or have any concerns