Our maternity services help and support mothers before, during and after birth.
From Tuesday 18th October, all mothers coming into hospital to have their babies will come to the Lister hospital in Stevenage.
Maternity unit
The new £16.4 million maternity unit opens its doors today, offering women greater choice than ever before on how and where to have their babies.
Midwife-led unit
With a completely new way of working, the new unit brings together all the inpatient maternity services across the Trust, and offers a midwife-led unit where women with lower-risk pregnancies can choose to have their babies and then, providing things remain uncomplicated, after the birth of the baby they will be cared for in the same room until they are ready to go home within hours of the birth.
Consultant-led unit
In the consultant-led unit, care is available to all women and is specifically tailored to those who might have higher risk pregnancies or an underlying medical condition. In the unit, women will receive care from a midwife in the same high quality environment and have all the consultant-led support they need.
Facilities
All rooms in the new units have a relaxed, homely feel and private en suite bathrooms. There are three birthing pools in total and women are encouraged to use relaxation techniques to help them have the best birth experience possible.
Those mothers choosing to use the midwife-led unit have the reassurance of knowing that the new consultant-led unit is in the same building should they need additional medical care.
Other services
There are also brand new dedicated obstetric theatres and recovery areas and a fully refurbished and expanded neonatal unit for babies who need extra care. In the neonatal unit, there are several family rooms to help keep families closer together whilst their baby is cared for – please see the ‘Neonatal’ services page of our website.
As part of the changes, the following services have also been launched:
- Early pregnancy unit – to provide scans and care for women who may be experiencing complications early in their pregnancy
- Day assessment unit – This unit will reduce the number of women having to be admitted into hospital during their pregnancy by assessing complications away from the delivery suites. Women will be referred by their GP, midwife or consultant for an appointment where their condition will be assessed and monitored, and a plan of care agreed
Outpatient care
All antenatal and outpatient care remains as it is now, local to where women live. This means that women used to going to the QEII or Hertford County hospitals, or seeing their community midwife, will continue to do so.
Contact us
To contact the maternity units please call
QEII 01707 390983
Please note that there will be no further admissions from 7.30 am on Tuesday 18th October 2011. The QEII maternity unit will be fully staffed and fully operational until the last mother and baby leave.
Lister 01438 781124
Visitors
Partners and siblings may visit on the wards between 8am and 1pm and between 5.30pm and 7pm
Other visitors (no children other than siblings) may visit between 3pm and 5.30pm and between 7pm and 8pm
Only 2 visitors at the bedside at a time please
No children other than the baby’s brothers or sisters are allowed to visit
There is no visiting on the delivery suite
