Hull Women and Children's Hospital

22/07/2025

Dr Kate Wood, Group Chief Medical Officer discusses how our hospitals have been preparing for the forthcoming strike and offers her advice to patients and the public

22/07/2025

Resident doctors (formerly known as junior doctors) are due to begin five days of continuous strike action at 7am this Friday 25 July, ending at 7am on Wednesday 30 July.

We have plans in place to maintain patient safety and to prioritise essential services during the strike period, including cancer and emergency care. With hundreds of doctors likely to take part in industrial action, however, this does mean we have regrettably had to cancel some outpatient clinics, non-urgent work and routine surgical procedures across our hospitals.

If we contact you to reschedule your appointment, please accept our apologies. If you do not hear from us and your appointment is due to take place over the strike period, please attend as planned as we will try to keep as many routine services running as we can.

See link in Comments for more details 👇

22/07/2025

🌸Caesarean birth🌸

There are a few reasons why Caesarean Section is offered as a method for birthing a baby.
• Breech position (maternal choice of birth - may opt for a vaginal breech)
• Low lying placenta (placenta previa)
• Uncontrollable pregnancy related high blood pressure or pre eclampsia
• Certain infections (ge***al herpes onset in late pregnancy or untreated HIV)
• Baby not receiving enough nutrients and oxygen requiring immediate delivery
• Your labour is not progressing
• Excessive vaginal bleeding
• Previous caesarean section and opting not for a vaginal birth

🌸Around 1 in 4 people have a caesarean birth in the UK

🌸Sometimes a caesarean is performed in an emergency but sometimes it’s opted for by the mother and carried out on an elective surgery basis. We are happy to talk to you about your birthing choices and to give you all the guidance you need to make an informed choice.

🌸The procedure involves cutting an incision in the abdomen and uterus to help deliver your baby. Most women are awake for the procedure with a Spinal anesthetic. In rare cases the mother may have to have a General Anesthetic (GA - put to sleep) for the procedure.

🌸You should think about your risks and benefits for having a caesarean section and make sure the right pathway of care is made for you. There is a lot of a support for you and your partner if you have a fear of birth also known as tokophobia. You should address this with your midwife to ensure we can help you with your pregnancy and birth experience.

🌸Sometimes, the experience of emergency surgery and birth not happening in the way that was planned can be emotionally difficult to process – for both the mother AND the birthing partner. If you find this to be the case, we hope that you reach out for the support that you need. If you have a question about a caesarean section, or how to process the physical or mental symptoms afterwards, please Ask a Midwife and we’ll happily chat to you about it.

21/07/2025

Resident doctors (formerly known as junior doctors) will shortly be taking strike action for five days, starting from 7am on Friday 25 July running until Wednesday 30 July at 6.59am.

Due to attend the hospital? Please continue as planned if you haven’t heard from us. If we need to cancel and reschedule your appointment, we'll be in touch ASAP to let you know, and if this is the case, please accept our apologies in advance.

Emergency care departments will remain open for the most serious illness and injuries, but long waits are expected. Please use alternatives such as local urgent treatment centres, NHS 111 or your local GP or pharmacy service wherever you can.

21/07/2025

Asthma in pregnancy

⭐️If you are known to have asthma and are trying for a baby reach out to your GP or practice nurse for more support

⭐️If you are currently pregnant make sure you inform your midwife and obstetrician of your pregnancy so they can give you additional support throughout your pregnancy.

⭐️DO NOT stop your medications unless you have been advised to do so. This may impact your symptoms whilst pregnant. Always seek medical advice.

⭐️If you smoke - be kind to yourself, your lungs and your baby by stopping 🚭

⭐️You may find in your pregnancy that your asthma symptoms get worse, stay the same or improve, everyone is different.

⭐️During pregnancy you experience physical changes and hormonal changes which might impact how your asthma is controlled. Regular reviews will help keep on top of your symptoms and management plans.

⭐️Poorly managed asthma might increase your risk of further pregnancy complications. Make sure you reach out to your care provider if you are struggling.

⭐️Ask your community midwife or obstetric team about vaccinations available to you during your pregnancy to help reduce your risk and your baby's risk of becoming unwell.

21/07/2025

Asthma in pregnancy

⭐️If you are known to have asthma and are trying for a baby reach out to your GP or practice nurse for more support

⭐️If you are currently pregnant make sure you inform your midwife and obstetrician of your pregnancy so they can give you additional support throughout your pregnancy.

⭐️DO NOT stop your medications unless you have been advised to do so. This may impact your symptoms whilst pregnant. Always seek medical advice.

⭐️If you smoke - be kind to yourself, your lungs and your baby by stopping 🚭

⭐️You may find in your pregnancy that your asthma symptoms get worse, stay the same or improve, everyone is different.

⭐️During pregnancy you experience physical changes and hormonal changes which might impact how your asthma is controlled. Regular reviews will help keep on top of your symptoms and management plans.

⭐️Poorly managed asthma might increase your risk of further pregnancy complications. Make sure you reach out to your care provider if you are struggling.

⭐️Ask your community midwife or obstetric team about vaccinations available to you during your pregnancy to help reduce your risk and your baby's risk of becoming unwell.

20/07/2025

🦡Badger notes🦡

This video has been shared from Harrogate District Hospital - you may find the information helpful https://youtu.be/zpAYylM7VsM

20/07/2025

Pregnant people looking to stop smoking are being invited to join a new study taking place across Hull and East Yorkshire.
SNAP-3 is open to those who are less than 25 weeks pregnant and who smoke more than five ci******es a day.
The study will look at how ni****ne replacement can be used in different ways to help expectant parents kick the habit.
Overseen by the University of Nottingham, SNAP-3 will be led locally by research midwives at Hull Women and Children’s Hospital. There is a national target of 1,430 participants, with Hull looking to recruit 15 of those by December 2025.
Sarah Collins, Lead Research Midwife for NHS Humber Health Partnership says:
“A lot of research has been conducted into the effectiveness of NRT, but there is less evidence of its success during pregnancy.
“The SNAP-3 study will provide participants with ni****ne patches and different types of behavioural support in a bid to improve their chances of stopping smoking.
“We are hoping to speak with would-be participants at an early stage, either at booking or their dating scan, to invite anyone smoking more than five ci******es a day, and who lives in Hull or East Yorkshire, to take part.”
The SNAP-3 study is intended to complement existing hospital-based stop smoking support delivered through the hospital’s in-house NHS Maternity To***co Dependency Team.
Signing up to the study involves a quick telephone conversation, including a number of non-judgmental questions about smoking habits, then there’s just a consent form to complete.
Each participant is then randomly allocated to one of two groups; either to receive the usual care provided by the hospital-based stop smoking team or the SNAP-3 study intervention, which involves using NRT in a slightly different way for a period of one to four weeks.
Sarah continues:
“Stopping smoking is the best possible thing a parent can do for their unborn child, so this study has the potential not only to improve the health of the pregnant parent, but also to increase the chances of a safe and healthy delivery and to enable baby to grow and develop to its full potential too.”
If you are under 25 weeks pregnant and would be interested in stopping smoking/learning more about the SNAP-3 study, complete our quick online form: https://buff.ly/48zpgFn

19/07/2025

🤰 Did you know? The whooping cough vaccine has been given in pregnancy in the UK since 2012. A study of 20,000 vaccinated women found no risks to pregnancy or unborn babies. Vaccination is the best way to protect your child! 💪
😷 Whooping cough is a serious infection causing long bouts of coughing and choking. It can lead to pneumonia and brain damage, especially in young babies. Let's keep them safe! 🏥
Public health midwife Joanna Melia says whooping cough is on the rise. Vaccination rates in Humber and North Yorkshire were the best in England last year, but we need to keep it up! 💉
🤱 Joanna says: "Vaccination in pregnancy passes immunity to your baby and protects them until they receive their own vaccination at eight weeks old." Lower your own risk of infection and protect your child! 💉 11 12
📅 When to get vaccinated: Around the time of your mid-pregnancy scan (usually at 20 weeks), but you can have it from 16 weeks. Get vaccinated before 32 weeks for the best protection. Ask your midwife about booking an appointment! 🗓️

19/07/2025

18/07/2025

If we don’t have your latest contact details, we can’t let you know if there are updates about your care or upcoming appointments.
So, if your phone number, email address or postal address have changed, please let us know.
Updating your details is really easy to do – check out this video to find out more.