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Your First Antenatal Appointment at the Fitzwilliam Semi-Private Clinic

Your first antenatal appointment is also known as your booking visit/booking appointment. This visit normally takes place when you are between 11 and 12 weeks pregnant. If you start your antenatal care later than this, we will aim to schedule your booking appointment as soon as possible.

Your first visit will last approximately 2 hours. It will include your dating scan in Merrion Ultrasound after which you return to Fitzwilliam Semi Private Clinic where a midwife will take your booking history and booking bloods. If you have already had your booking history taken by phone or video call, then your booking visit will be shorter.

Please note, your first visit with your consultant will be at 14 – 16 weeks. Your follow up antenatal visits will take approximately 1 hour unless you require any additional or specialist care during pregnancy.

While we try to keep waiting times to a minimum, unfortunately there are times when delays are unavoidable. 

Please arrive no sooner than 10 minutes before your appointment. One nominated support person is welcome to attend your appointment with you.

If you need to change your booking appointment, please contact spc@nmh.ie or phone the semi-private clinic on 01 637 3537, 01 637 3580 or 01 637 3581 so that we are able to give your appointment slot to someone else.

What to expect at your visit

1. Check in

Your appointment will take place in the Fitzwilliam Semi-Private Clinic at The National Maternity Hospital. Entry to the Fitzwilliam Semi-Private clinic is on Mount Street. (Please see map on how to get to The National Maternity Hospital, Holles Street in the Contact Us page here)

You should first check in at the Fitzwilliam Semi-Private Clinic reception desk. Our administration staff will confirm your personal details with you, your pregnancy will be registered on the hospital administration system and a healthcare record will be created for you.

Please make sure you complete and bring along your maternity registration form and your GDPR consent form which will have been sent to you either by post or by email.

2. Dating Scan

You will be directed to Merrion Ultrasound for your dating scan. Merrion Ultrasound is located on Mount Street close to the Fitzwilliam Semi-Private Clinic. Your dating scan aims to detect your baby’s heartbeat, calculate the expected birth date for your baby, your baby’s size and if you are expecting more than one baby.

Please have a full bladder for this scan. In early pregnancy, your womb can be quite small and lies quite low in the pelvis. A full bladder helps to push the womb upwards which helps the midwife sonographer see your baby more clearly.

The Merrion Ultrasound Clinic will give you an appointment for your anomaly/anatomy scan. Your anomaly scan is usually carried out between 20 and 22 weeks. The purpose of this scan is to check the health of your baby, assess your baby's growth, confirm your due date and assess the amniotic fluid volume and location of the placenta (afterbirth).

3. Return to Fitzwilliam Semi-Private Clinic

Once your dating scan is complete you should return immediately to the Fitzwilliam Semi -Private Clinic to complete your appointment.

  • Please go to the reception in the Semi-Private Clinic.
  • Our administration staff will accept payment of your fees, issue you with a receipt and provide an invoice for your insurer.
  • They will confirm the schedule of antenatal visits with you.
  • You will be given an appointment card which will have the date of your next appointment on it. This will be your first antenatal visit with your chosen Consultant which happens when you are 14- 16 weeks pregnant. You will also have received this appointment date by post.
  • You will then take a seat in the waiting room.
4. Urine, Blood Pressure and BMI Checks

Our health care assistant will ask you to give a urine sample. 

If protein is found in your urine your midwife will send a sample of urine to the laboratory to check if you have a urinary tract infection. In later pregnancy, it may also be a sign of pre-eclampsia. If glucose is present in your urine, further tests will be carried out to check for diabetes in pregnancy.

The Health Care Assistant will check your blood pressure (BP). This first BP reading is used as a ‘baseline reading’. Your blood pressure will be checked at all visits and compared to this reading. This is to monitor you for high blood pressure and pre-eclampsia.

The health care assistant will record your weight. Your height and weight are then used to calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI). Having a baseline of your BMI is important for a number of reasons including to calculate the correct amount of medication for you if needed.

5. First Visit Assessment with Your Midwife

You will be seen by one of our midwives and a detailed history and assessment of your physical, mental and social health and wellbeing will be undertaken. You’ll be asked if you have or have had any medical conditions and/or surgical procedures. You will be asked about your family health history. You will also be asked about any previous pregnancies you have had.  

Mental health difficulties are very common during pregnancy. The Midwife will ask you how you are feeling to help identify women who may benefit from additional supports.

If you have any questions or any concerns about yourself or your pregnancy you can discuss these with your Midwife. Your Midwife may give you information on the following:

Your midwife will also direct you to the HSE’s ‘My Pregnancy book’ which is filled with expert advice from health professionals including doctors, midwives, nurses, physiotherapists, dietitians, psychologists and many more on pregnancy, birth and caring for your baby and yourself in the postnatal period.

You will also be offered a carbon monoxide breath test at your first visit to tell you if you have been exposed to levels of carbon monoxide. Cigarette smoking is the most common source of exposure to carbon monoxide.

You will be asked questions to see if you are at risk of developing a blood clot in pregnancy.

Any allergies you have will be recorded in your healthcare record.

Depending on your clinical history some women will require additional tests which may include a self-taken vaginal swab to check for GBS, MRSA, CPE/CRE. All women under 25 years of age will be offered a self-taken vaginal swab test to check for chlamydia.

Your midwife will outline the plan of shared maternity care with your GP with you. Please see here for guide to your antenatal visits at The Fitzwilliam Semi-Private Clinic.

Please note partners are welcome to accompany you for your dating scan but the midwife assessment is one to one, on your own.

6. Blood Tests

Blood tests during pregnancy help to check you and your baby’s health. Your blood sample will also be screened for a number of infectious diseases. If you know your blood group is RhD-negative a sample will be taken to check your baby’s blood type.

Sometimes after reviewing your booking history your Midwife will order additional blood tests and these will be explained to you. Your midwife will take your bloods after your history and assessment is complete. You will only be contacted regarding your blood results if they are abnormal and require follow up.

7. Checkout and Follow up Appointment Arranged

Your booking visit will then be finished.

Your next visit to the Fitzwilliam Semi-Private Clinic will be when you are 14-16 weeks pregnant with your chosen Consultant as per your appointment card.