Our labour ward at Musgrove Park Hospital provides consultant (senior doctor) led care if you have or develop medical problems during your pregnancy or labour and when giving birth. This ward has direct access to doctors is recommended.
If you choose to give birth on the labour ward, an obstetrician will take the main responsibility for your care, but you will still be looked after by a midwife during your labour.
Our facilities include:
Eight dedicated birth rooms (six of the rooms have en-suite facilities)
A room with a birthing pool
One emergency theatre.
We offer all forms of pain relief for your birth from transcutaneous nerve stimulation (TENS a method of pain relief involving the use of mild electrical current), Entonox (gas and air), Diamorphine (injection) to Epidurals. We also provide the use of the birthing pool on the labour ward, if it is safe for you to use it (depending on your medical/obstetric history)
We have a range of birthing aids to help you remain mobile and active throughout labour and to manage your pain as naturally as possible. You are encouraged to bring your own music and pillows with you – whatever may help you feel comfortable and as at home as possible.
If for any reason you need a caesarean birth (either as an emergency or planned) or instrumental delivery (forceps or ventouse) our theatre is within the main labour ward.
