At Kuopio University Hospital Women's Outpatient Clinic, two specialists and one specialising physician work with pregnant women. A midwife acts as the physician’s partner. The midwife's work is focused on mapping the patient's situation, making entries, and providing guidance, advice and support as well as organising follow-up.
At the Outpatient Clinic, screening ultrasound examinations are also performed on healthy expectant mothers who do not need a physician's examination. Pregnancy monitoring represents a collaboration between the maternity clinic, women's outpatient clinic and, if necessary, various medical specialities. An internist visits the outpatient clinic one day a week, primarily to treat diabetic patients.
The Outpatient Clinic also works closely with the hospital's own geneticist and neonatal paediatricians, and if necessary with central hospitals and other university hospitals.
The university hospital has a teaching obligation. Our unit also conducts various research work.
The maternity outpatient clinic checks the mother's general condition. If necessary, a urine sample is examined and blood pressure is measured, blood tests are taken, and cervix condition is checked. The health of the foetus is examined by means of the heart rate curve and a safe ultrasound examination.
The well-being of the foetus is assessed by weight assessment, amniotic fluid volume, foetal movements and Dopplers. By performing a Doppler examination on the basis of the umbilical artery and, if necessary, many individual veins, the functioning of the placenta and direction of the foetal blood flow are determined. The blood circulation of foetuses with growth disorders is closely monitored, if necessary, in the outpatient clinic or in the women's acute centre.
If the pregnancy is progressing normally, no separate birth planning visit at the maternity outpatient clinic is required. The child health centre makes a referral for birth planning at the maternity outpatient clinic in the following situations:
the mother has previously given birth by caesarean section, and there have been no vaginal deliveries since then
problems have come up during a previous delivery
a large foetus is suspected
pelvic stenosis is suspected
the mother has an underlying medical condition affecting delivery
The time of birth and need for uterine maturation or initiation is assessed individually for each expectant mother, depending on her situation and that of the foetus. About a quarter of births are initiated at KYS (Kuopio University Hospital), which corresponds to the Finnish average.
A pregnancy is classified as overdue when two weeks have passed since the calculated time (H42). In the case of impending overdue pregnancy, the child health clinic refers the expectant mother to the women's acute centre at week 41+5. When H41+5 is complete regardless of the day of the week, the condition of the expectant mother and foetus is examined. At that point, the need for initiating birth is assessed.
The Women's Acute Centre offers a 24-hour maternity reception, delivery rooms and a gynaecological special medical care emergency service. Pregnant women and gynaecological emergency patients who require follow-up and observation are treated there.
The centre has its own operating theatres and a recovery room where caesarean sections, manual removal of the placenta, curettages and lacerations, as well as minor gynaecological emergency procedures are performed.
At the Women’s Acute Centre, expectant mothers are treated for the following conditions, among others:
In addition, women with the following conditions are treated at the Acute Centre:
