FAQ

Yes! Everyone who lives in Amsterdam Center, West, Oost, de Pijp, or Zuid is most welcome.

If you live in a different area, you can always call us. We can then refer you to a good other practice in your area.

Register now!

Yes. We will never give information to others without your permission. Read our Privacy statement for more information.

We work in our practice with 7 midwives (Lotte, Emely, Laudi, Pippa and Roos). They work (almost) full-time. During our holidays there are incidentally other experienced midwives working. Read more...

• For emergency, childbirth or urgent medical questions 06-5478 8178
• For general questions and appointments 020-627 9767
  Monday to Thursday 9: 00-13: 30

>When to call us

Per instructions of The Dutch National Organisation of Midwifery (KNOV) and the RIVM, we took the following measurements in our practice:

• We cancelled all our live seminars up until April 2020. You can still sign up, and we'll send you all the digital information you need.
• To prevent infection risks, we don't shake hands anymore. And we kindly ask you to arrive only shortly before your appointment, to prevent unnecessary contacts in the waiting room.
• Starting today, the check-ups at our practice are less frequent and will onely contain blood pressure and abdominal palpitation. Questions and concerns will be discussed on the phone later, at a set time. We also kindly ask you to come by yourself (no other children, no partner or parents, etc).
• The hospital also updated their policies, which means that during labour you can only bring one extra person (EITHER your partner OR your mother OR doula). Family members are not allowed to wait in the waitingroom or corridor.
• We will try to do the postnatal check-ups over the phone as much as possible. If medically necessary, we will still visit you at home, of course.
• In case you think you might be infected with COVID-19, please contact your general practitioner. For all questions concerning your pregnancy, you can contact us.
• If you have a fever, or if you or your partner is infected with the COVID-19, please don't visit us, but call us first. Please use our 'normal' 020-number for that, and not our emergency phone number.

<b>We keep you posted!</b>
The news concerning COVID-19 changes everyday. We keep you posted with all the latest news and updates through our website and Instagram account (#witsenkade_verloskundigen). Should you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact us.

During this appointment with us at the practice we take a medical history. This means that we ask a lot of questions about your health, the health of both families and your lifestyle.

On the basis of your answers, if necessary we will do blood tests and give you personal advice. If you want to, we also provide information about the possibilities of research into congenital or hereditary disorders. Some of these studies can be done better before the pregnancy.

We will also discuss your menstrual cycle to assess when you are most fertile.

At the end of the appointment, you have a clear picture of what you can do and have to do to become pregnant as healthy and as fast as possible.

You will receive a booklet with all the tips and advice explained once again so that you can read everything quietly at home.

1. Call or email us or register online! A first appointment is often around 8 weeks. But sooner if necessary or fine. We also plan the first ultrasound immediately.
2. Write down our telephone numbers. From now on you can always call us with questions!
3. Enjoy this special period. We will take good care of you!

• On average, you get to practice 12 times on the check. But if you want to, it can also be done more often. The first appointment is around 8 weeks.
  Up to 24 weeks of pregnancy you come on average every 4-6 weeks, then every 3 weeks until you are 30 weeks pregnant. From 30-36 weeks you will come every 2 weeks and from 37 weeks you will be weekly in control until the birth. Read more about 'Our way of working'.
• You get multiple scans. The first at 7-8 or 10 weeks.
• During the delivery we come to your home and there you decide whether you want to give birth at home or in the hospital. (Often we already know this from you, because we discuss that extensively during pregnancy)
  After the birth we come to your home for the checks of mother and child.

10% if you have not had an ultrasound.
Have you seen a heart beat on an echo? Then the chance is only 1-3%.

Call us anytime, if you have any concerns!

• You are worried
• You have contractions (or stomach ache) and have not yet been pregnant for 37 weeks
• You have loss of blood
• You have complaints the can indicate high blood pressure like:
  • You don’t feel well, a kind of sick and unpleasant feeling
  • You have a pain on the right-hand side above your stomach. You have a
    tight feeling around your midriff (the place behind your bra under your breasts)
  • You have a stomach ache
  • You are bothered by light or have other complaints about your eyes
  • You are suddenly retaining fluids in your face or your legs
  • You have a tingling feeling in your fingers

In these cases, always call 06-54788178

In the pregnancy it is possible to have your unborn child examined for a number of congenital disorders. This is called prenatal screening.
These examinations are not mandatory - You determine if you want to undergo these tests.

You can select three tests:
- Screening for Down-, Edwards- and Patau's syndrome
- The anomaly scan (13 en20-week ultrasound)

Read more...

Mail or call us and we will email him immediately!

• info@witsenkade.nl
• 020-6279767

• At home or in the hospital.Where you feel most comfortable.
• We have no preference and never take risks!
• You can give birth to us in all hospitals in Amsterdam.

Read more about where to deliver.

Yes! During pregnancy we will inform you well about the possibilities of pain relief. During the delivery you decide whether you want this.

Read more about coping with pain.

Always call 06-54788178 when:

• You are worried
• There is loss of blood

You are having contractions

• It is your first delivery you should call us if you have been having regular contractions for an hour, recurring every 3 minutes and continuing for 1 minute.
• You have given birth before, you should call us if you are having contractions every five minutes and continuing for 1 minute. It is possible that we make a different arrangement, depending on how your first confinement went.

Your waters break

• It is brown or green (or you doubt it) call us immediately
• It is colourless with white (or light pink) flakes and:
  • The head has not yet engaged (we will tell you this during surgery), call us immediately
  • The head has engaged then you don’t need to call us during the night; try to go back to sleep and call us in the morning. If this happens in daytime, you can call us immediately.

• identity card
• the pregnancy file that you received from us
• 2 outfits for the baby but 50-56
• 1 hat
• a blanket
• car seat
• T-shirt for yourself
• clean clothes for yourself for after delivery.
• toiletry (incl spectacles / lenses, lip balm, shampoo, rennies, toothbrush and toothpaste)
• telephone (including charger)
• camera (with charger and empty SD card!)
• if you have dietary requirements, it is wise to bring your own food
• You do not need to bring the maternity package

A maternity nurse is a woman who specializes in caring for mother and child (and the father). She will help you at home to take care of the baby. Every day a few hours. She performs medical checks, acts as a source of information and ensures that you can recover from pregnancy and childbirth. Sometimes the maternity nurse also assists us during the delivery.

Register as soon as possible at a maternity agency.

You can register with a maternity care agency or with an independent maternity nurse.

• A maternity care agency is an organization where several maternity nurses work. If you register with them, you will be accompanied by one or more maternity nurses from that organization during the maternity period.
• An independent maternity nurse is often an experienced maternity nurse who works alone and will be present with you for the entire week.

Register with a maternity care agency or maternity nurse if you are between 12-18 weeks pregnant.

Find a maternity care worker in Amsterdam

Of course!

We will visit you three times on average in the maternity week. Usually on the 2nd, 4th and 7th day, but this dependent on how you are doing. If necessary, we come every day.

During our visit we discuss the delivery, we assess how you and the baby are doing and we answer all your questions. We check your recovery by, among other things, assessing whether the uterus is recovering properly, whether any sutures are properly healed and how the feedings are going. We will also keep a close eye on the weight and general condition of the baby.

Always call 06-54788178 when:

• You are worried
• You are losing a lot of blood. If you lose more than two large clots of blood or if you continue to bleed as if a tap is open
• You feel ill and have a fever
• You feel down
• The baby is not drinking well
• You think that the baby is ill
• The temperature of the baby is lower than 36.5 or higher than 37.5 degrees Centigrade.

Yes!
We still have an after-check, 6 weeks after delivery.

During this check on the practice we will discuss the delivery and evaluate the care provided by us. We also check your blood pressure, weight and if necessary iron content. If you still have complaints about a scar, we will also assess the recovery. And of course we really like to admire your 6 week old baby!

Call us to make an appointment with the midwife of your choice!

Based on limited data, there is no evidence that pregnant women are more susceptible to infec=on by COVID-19. It is still uncertain whether the course of an infection with COVID-19 is different from that of women who are not pregnant. From other viral infections, we know that a woman is more likely to have lung problems if she is pregnant.

Based on limited data, we recommend a hospital delivery during the active infection with surveillance (cardiotocogram, CTG) of the fetus. If the infection was> 14 days ago, this advice will be canceled.

Not really, the caregivers are fit. If they have symptoms and fever they are not allowed to work.

NO! There will always be a midwife to support you!

Based on limited data, we recommend a hospital delivery during the active infection with surveillance (cardiotocogram, CTG) of the fetus. If the infection was> 14 days ago, this advice will be canceled.

Yes, the multidisciplinary working group Corona recommends in the position Vaccination against COVID-19 around the desire to have children, pregnancy and childbirth, that pregnant women should be vaccinated with an mRNA vaccine (Pfizer or Moderna), after receiving an invitation for a COVID-19 vaccination.

This position has been revised. (Previously, it was recommended that only vulnerable pregnant women should be vaccinated.) Research shows, pregnant women with COVID-19 have a greater risk of developing a serious course of the disease.