The risks associated with induction of labour

At your booking appointment your midwife will go through all the screening that you will be offered during pregnancy and for your baby once they are born. The first screening will involve a blood test at your initial appointment, which will be looking for infectious diseases, your rhesus factor, your haemoglobin level, your blood type and if you have any antibodies.  Also at this appointment your midwife will make a referral for you to have a dating scan, which will give you an estimated date of birth for baby.  At this scan they will ask if you would like to…

The advice below is for anyone who is pregnant and needs information about measles. It includes what to do if you have any symptoms of measles, or if you have been in close contact with someone who has measles. If you need to access maternity care and you have measles symptoms or you have been in close contact with someone who has, please phone ahead. This includes if you are coming to hospital in labour, as well as the Maternity Triage or routine appointments in the hospital or community. This will help us to provide care for you in the most…

The Early Pregnancy Assessment Unit (EPAU) is a clinic, which assesses women in early pregnancy who have bleeding or pain (up to 18 weeks of pregnancy).  It is located on the second floor of Hereford County Hospital, within the women's health department. Your GP or Accident and Emergency doctor will arrange your appointment for you. We aim to diagnose your problem, offer advice, support and any treatment which may be needed. If you do not already have an appointment a member of the team will ring you with a date and time. We aim to see you within 2 working days.…

Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase (ESBL) producing Organism information for patients This information will be given to patients in hospital if they have a positive result for this organism.

Health chiefs in England are encouraging parents to be aware of the signs of respiratory illnesses in young children, as data from Public Health England (PHE) shows cases are starting to rise in parts of the country. Respiratory illnesses, including colds and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are very common in young children and we see them every year. Last winter, due to the various restrictions in place to reduce the spread of COVID-19, there were far fewer infections in younger people. This means many will not have developed immunity and so we may see more cases this year than in…

Due to national guidelines for dentistry the service is operating in a different way: At present we are providing dental pain relief if required for urgent treatment. You can contact our clinics (see details on right of this page) for urgent advice. We also provide weekday evening advice clinics, Monday to Thursday, 5.30pm to 8pm.  If you require urgent dental advice outside the hours listed please telephone 111. Please note at peak times patients will be triaged in line with their clinical need and the most urgent cases will be given priority; patients are therefore advised to telephone at the…

Regular exercise is recommended for everyone, not just people with inflammatory joint disease. Exercise can help reduce your risk of many conditions, including heart disease and many forms of cancer. It is helpful to do a mixture of aerobic, stretching and strengthening exercises. Exercising regularly can help relieve stress, help keep your joints mobile, and strengthen the muscles supporting your joints. Exercise can also help you lose weight if you're overweight, which can put extra strain on your joints. It is important to find a balance between rest and exercise. Rest sometimes makes inflamed joints feel more comfortable, but without movement…

Jaundice is a common condition which affects many newborn babies. It is usually mild and causes a yellow tone to the skin and sometimes to the sclera (whites of the eyes). It usually resolves after a few days and isn’t too much of a concern. However, occasionally babies will need treatment for jaundice. This is most likely to be in the form of phototherapy, but if it is severe then an exchange transfusion may be advised, this is rarer. Jaundice occurs because when babies are in the womb, they have many more red blood cells than average to allow for…

Safer staffing levels in our hospitals We know that having the right staff with the right skills in the right place at the right time is essential to the delivery of safe, high quality patient care. That is why, following national guidance, we publish the planned and actual number of nursing and midwifery staff working on each ward, together with the percentage of shifts meeting safe staffing guidelines.  Safe staffing isn’t just about the number of staff on the ward. It is also about the different skills and qualifications staff have. The type of illness or conditions on particular wards also needs…