🚑 Maternity ER: when and how to get there?

Gear & Prep

• Hospital bag (packed, zipped, and sitting by the front door).
• Pregnancy medical records (test results, ultrasound scans, health insurance info, ID).
• Transport sorted: Taxi or rideshare app ready to go (keep a number or app handy).

What to Do?

1. 1. Call first

   Follow your own maternity team’s plan for contractions or fluid leakage. Report the time, colour and smell of fluid, gestational age, bleeding, fever and baby’s movements. Do not delay assessment to shower or pack.

2. 2. Urgent warning signs

   Reduced or stopped baby movements, bleeding, severe headache or vision changes, severe abdominal pain, fever or concerning fluid need immediate maternity advice. Do not wait for the next day or use a home Doppler for reassurance.

3. 3. Emergency

   Call 000 for heavy bleeding, collapse, seizure, severe breathing difficulty, chest pain or imminent birth when travel is unsafe. Do not drive yourself in an emergency.

Same topic

• 🚨 7 red-flag reasons to head straight to labor & delivery
• ❓ What happens after a trip to maternity triage?
• ⏳ Understanding labour stages and cervical dilation
• 💉 The epidural: how it works and why it helps