What I offer

Sue Willis Photography
Antenatal care - full packages
Each appointment can last up to two hours. During these sessions, I will holistically assess the health and wellbeing of both you and your baby, performing a full antenatal check. The care you receive will be entirely individualised to meet your unique needs and wishes. Your care package will include the following:
- Booking Appointment – This includes taking a full medical and pregnancy history, creating your personal maternity notes, and planning your care for both pregnancy and birth. It also involves measuring your blood pressure, conducting urinalysis, and providing referrals to a multi-disciplinary medical team if necessary.
- I suggest that all packages are dual-booked with your local NHS maternity service to ensure access to any screening and maternal well being blood tests, as well as ultrasound scans, that you may choose to enhance your care. This approach promotes a collaborative, multi-disciplinary team model, which is considered best clinical practice. However, if you prefer, private blood tests, screening and ultrasound scans can be arranged at an additional cost.
- Debrief of previous birth, if required.
- All antenatal appointments are provided in your own home, or at my clinic in East Finchley (N2) if you prefer.
- I can accompany you to any hospital Obstetric, other speciality or scan appointments, should you feel you would benefit from my advocacy and support.
- Antenatal appointments are typically scheduled monthly until 28 weeks, then fortnightly until 36 weeks and weekly until birth. However, if you feel you need more frequent, or less frequent visits, your care will always be tailored to your individual needs.
- During your antenatal care I will be available to be contacted for non-emergencies during normal working hours via Whatsapp.
- I work alongside other experienced Independent Midwives and, occasionally, doulas, as we routinely have two of us attending your birth. Most of your antenatal care will be with me initially, but in the third trimester we will alternate your appointments to give you the opportunity to get to know the other Midwife and build a relationship with them.
- Discussions around your place of birth and birth preferences will continue throughout your antenatal care. At your 36 week appointment we aim for both myself and the other Midwife involved in your care to attend, so that we can finalise those plans and deliver any equipment ready for your birth.
Individual antenatal appointments
Preparation for breastfeeding and parenthood session - during these sessions I can discuss how to prepare for the early hours, days and weeks after baby is born, what to expect and how to navigate difficulties you may encounter. If this is not your first baby, this session can be tailored to your needs, addressing specifics that you found difficult with any previous feeding journey(s) in order to prepare for this baby.
Individual antenatal appointments/consultations - this can be a one-off antenatal check and/or discussion around whatever you are encountering for your current pregnancy with your NHS care providers.
Labour and Birth care
As your Midwife I will be on call for you 24/7 from 37 completed weeks of pregnancy, until your baby is born, which, in some cases, can go beyond 42 weeks.
I am able to support your birth, either in your home as your Midwife, or in an NHS setting of your choice, though this would be as a non-clinical birth professional as I would not be able to provide any clinical Midwifery care.
If you have chosen to birth at home I will come to your house when you are in established labour and will stay with you until after your baby has been born. When birth is coming close, a second Midwife will also attend.
If, during your home birth we have recommended that you transfer into hospital for additional medical care, I would accompany you there to provide continuity of carer, support and advocacy as a non-clinical birth professional, not to provide any clinical Midwifery care.
Labour care includes:
- Both Midwives on call for you from 37 completed weeks of pregnancy until birth
- Use of TENS machine and disposable pads
- Inco-pads and other care items for use during your labour, birth and postnatal period
- Gas & air for homebirth, if required, this will need to be ordered for you
- Immediate postnatal care for yourself and baby at a home birth
- Support with breast or bottle feeding depending on your choice
- Vitamin K for baby, if chosen, at a home birth
- Clearing up after a home birth, making sure you and baby are comfortable and tucked up in bed, ready to start your 'Babymoon'
Postnatal care - full packages
This is an area of support that can be very over-looked by all of our society. Often referred to as the 'Cinderella' of NHS services and might not be addressed as important by many antenatal educators. This time of support is really important, however your birth progressed and whatever your personal goals are regarding feeding and early parenting. The postnatal care I provide is very thorough and will provide for your clinical and emotional needs as well as supporting you with whatever individual goals you might have.
Each postnatal visit will usually be 1-2 hours and include a full postnatal health check for you and your baby, support with feeding and information on caring for your newborn baby. I will usually visit you every day for the first 5 days, then gradually space out your visits during the second week, while ensuring you are ready for that spacing. Once you are ready, my visits then generally become weekly, with a final discharge visit around 6 weeks.
Your baby's weight will be monitored as indicated, depending on how feeding is going. Routinely, this would be on days 5, 10-14, then weekly but if there are particular feeding challenges an individualised plan will be made.
I can arrange for a private newborn infant physical examination (NIPE) in your home within 72 hours of birth for an additional fee or you may be able to access this examination via the NHS.
The Newborn Blood Spot Test to screen for genetic and metabolic disorders is included in your care and will be offered on, or around, day 5.
Hearing screening for your baby will be offered through the NHS Health Visiting Service.
Individual postnatal appointments
Individual postnatal appointments can be booked for those who are finding their NHS postnatal care requires enhanced support. This will usually be 1-2 hours, if seen at home, depending on how much history I need to gather, and include a full postnatal check for you and your baby. Feeding support and information on caring for your newborn will be provided.
There is also an option to see you for postnatal checks at my clinic in East Finchley, N2.
Feeding support
I can provide feeding consultations, either in your own home, or at my clinic in East Finchley, N2, which include the following:
- Review of pregnancy, birth, feeding history including your current concerns. This will be obtained from you via an electronic health questionnaire sent when you book. This information enables me to fully prepare for your consultation ahead of time
- Feeding assessment, including observing your baby latching, or bottle feeding, if that is involved
- Oral function assessment if indicated and required
- Strategies to support issues and concerns identified
- Particular attention to positioning, attachment and latching techniques
- Tongue-tie release (frenulotomy), if indicated and appropriate
- Comprehensive aftercare advice and support
- A summary of your consultation sent to you via email within 24 hours, with links to further information, videos etc
Tongue-tie release
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Sue Willis Photography
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“Just as a woman's heart knows how and when to pump, her lungs to inhale, and her hand to pull back from fire, so she knows when and how to give birth.”
Virginia Di Orio