What do you need?

Whether you are going to give birth at home or somewhere else, always make sure that:

• Your bed is elevated from the ground. The height of your bed must be at least 80 cm, measured from the top of the mattress to the ground. When you’re at least 36 weeks pregnant, you can get bed risers at Medipoint or Medicura
  
• Make sure you know how many bed risers you need and what size they should be. When the risers don’t fit on the reels or the legs of your bed, you can use crates or boxes as an alternative (make sure they can handle the weight).
• Please allow for sufficient walking space around your bed. The headboard of your bed should be against a wall, but the other sides of your bed should be available to reach, so we can get to both sides of the bed.
• if you have a sloping ceiling, make sure that the bed is standing in a way that we are able to stand up straight.
• there is adequate heating and lighting, preferably a moveable lamp.
• Have your maternity kit ready in your bedroom (e.g. under the bed). Leave everything in the box so that we can immediately reach for what we need. You can take out the mattress cover and lay it on your bed, if you want.
• Since we (Ridderhof midwives) are all right-handed, we assist the birth from your right side. This means that if you stand at the foot of your bed with your face toward the headboard, you need to lie on the left side of the bed. Also, this is where you can install the mattress protection.
• two buckets ready for use, one with a garbage bag inside.
• Have a toilet potty ready under the bed (Medipoint or Medicura)
• It is not possible to give birth on a waterbed. Make sure that you have a (normal) raised bed available.
• Hint: try out beforehand how to attach the baby’s car seat in the car. Suppose you give birth in the hospital and you want to take your baby home, it is useful that you have had some practice.