Becoming a parent is one of the most important and exciting experiences that we have in our lives. It can also be a very emotional, stressful and worrying time, but having the right support and care around you could make the world of difference.
We are the best!
Last year the Healthcare Commission, the independent watchdog for England, rated Stockport and the High Peak's maternity service as the 'Best Performing' in the country based on feedback from patients, staff and factual information.
Stockport maternity services offer a range of choices to parents and parents-to-be. These include the options of home birth for healthy 'low risk' women, two birth centres and a consultant led delivery suite at Stepping Hill Hospital.
Our philosophy is to help women and their partners make informed decisions, based on their individual needs. We provide as much information as possible to enable women to have control over their pregnancy, birth and continuity of care. We aim to encourage as many women as possible to experience a normal birth and aim to help all parents to have a positive birth experience, wherever possible.
We have active links with the Greater Manchester Homebirth Support Group and encourage healthy 'low risk' women, with problem-free pregnancies, to consider home birth as an option.
Who can you talk to?
You can talk to a supervisor of midwives about any aspects of your care in pregnancy, birth or afterwards. You can contact a supervisor 24 hours a day by ringing Stepping Hill Hospital's main switchboard on 0161 483 1010.
Our patient information leaflets provide a comprehensive range of advice for visitors to the maternity services department.
Seasonal Flu Vaccination For Pregnant Women
The seasonal flu vaccination provides around 70-80% protection against flu.
Having the seasonal flu vaccination now will reduce the risk of you catching flu this winter,
therefore reducing the risk of complications during pregnancy and protecting your baby.
This leaflet answers
some of the questions you may have about the seasonal flu vaccination.
For further information, you can speak with you GP or midwife
Facilities at Stepping Hill
Facilities at Stepping Hill include:
15 spacious en-suite delivery rooms
Co-located birth centre
Dedicated maternity theatre and recovery
3 birthing pools
40 antenatal / postnatal beds
Transitional care
Newly refurbished women's outpatient department
Pregnancy assessment unit
Neonatal unit
Our midwives work in eight community-based teams in Stockport and two teams in the High Peak . Each team offers the full range of midwifery care - antenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal care. We actively promote the midwife as first point of contact for women, and hold antenatal clinics in a variety of settings.
We provide home assessments in labour whenever possible, enabling a woman's choice regarding place of birth to be flexible. The teams also provide 'Preparation for Birth and Parenting' courses, which include an active birth workshop. There are also two aquanatal sessions each week, one in Edgeley or Marple and one in the High Peak.
We are currently working towards the UNICEF 'Baby Friendly' Award which is given to hospitals which offer strong and consistent support for breastfeeding. There are breastfeeding support groups throughout Stockport plus a weekly breastfeeding clinic at Stepping Hill for women who have more complex issues related to feeding. Visit our website to find out more www.breastfeedingstockport.org.uk.
Active birth workshops are offered both by the midwifery teams within Stockport and the High Peak and also at Stepping Hill and John Lewis for parents who live outside Stockport but have chosen to come here for their baby's birth. At your workshop you will have the chance to learn about practical ways to help labour progress smoothly and how birth partners can support.
Aquanatal sessions run by midwives take place on:
You don't have to live in Stockport to access the maternity services at Stepping Hill
We welcome enquiries and bookings from women who live outside the Stockport area.
Increasingly women are choosing to travel to Stockport to access the facilities we
have on offer. If you do not have a Stockport GP and would like to use our maternity
service, you can complete our self-referral form. We will be pleased to show you
around the maternity unit at a time which is convenient for you and your family.
Please contact the antenatal clinic manager on 0161 419 5291 to arrange a visit or
to have an informal discussion; alternatively, send an e-mail
to antenatal.clinic@stockport.nhs.uk and we will contact you.
It is never too early to start planning
If you are thinking about having a baby it is never too early to start researching the maternity services available to you. We believe in providing a team approach and if you decide to choose our maternity facilities, you will be assigned a named midwife, within a team of midwives, who will ensure that your individual needs are met.
If you are currently booked in with another hospital but would prefer to have your baby at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, we can even help you change your booking. Call 0161 419 5551 for further details.
Contacts
Julie Estcourt - Head of midwifery - 0161 419 5522
Debbie Garrod - Consultant midwife - 0161 419 5531