HELMS Journey - Pregnancy

Congratulations on your pregnancy! You’ve reached the next phase of your HELMS journey. The booking visit is crucial for us to do a scan for the baby and determine your estimated date of delivery (EDD). We will also be performing baseline screening for you and your partner.

• Measure height, weight, blood pressure, and do a urine test
• Review diet and level of physical activity
• Perform basic history taking and physical examination
• Review ultrasound dating scan and determine EDD
• Perform antenatal blood tests, including FBC and Hb electrophoresis, blood group
• • Full blood count and Hb electrophoresis: Identify underlying anemia or low Hb, which would require iron supplementation
  • Blood group and Rhesus screening: Determine blood group and Rh status, if Rh negative, you will require Rhogam between 28 to 32 weeks
  • Infection screening: Screen for Hepatitis B, Syphilis and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
  • Rubella immunity screening: Screen for Rubella immunity, if not immune, you should receive MMR vaccination after pregnancy
• Perform eye assessments
• Provide necessary supplements
• Give vaccination – influenza
• Counsel about Down Syndrome screening (DSS)
• Review symptoms
• Collect stool