All babies are entitled to a 6-8 week baby check. At Dolphin House these are booked directly by our admin team and you will receive a letter through the post approximately 2 weeks before the appointment. Your baby’s immunisations are also booked automatically at the same time for the first Thursday after they turn 8 weeks old.

Our local health visitors can help with many problems in children under 5 including

• post-natal depression
• emotional support
• your child’s growth and development
• feeding your baby, including breast feeding and introducing solids.
• healthy eating and exercise
• staying safe and preventing accidents
• behaviour difficulties (including sleeping, eating, potty training and teething)
• immunisations
• some medication prescriptions
• common infections and skin problems in childhood
• support for children with special educational needs and disabilities
• domestic abuse.

Please click this link Health visitors in Hertfordshire (hertsfamilycentres.org) to find out more about what they can do and how to contact them. Including their very good chat health text service.

All our doctors are paediatric trained and can help with any concerns you may have and our two minor illness nurses can see children over the age of one for any minor illness such as earaches, sore throats, fevers and cough and colds.

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Routine baby immunisations (vaccinations or jabs) appointments are held on a Thursday morning. You will automatically be sent an appointment for the first set of immunisations when your baby is around 8 weeks.

The second dose (at 12 weeks) and the third dose (at 16 weeks) will be subsequently booked after your first appointment.

For 1 year and pre-school (3years 4 months) immunisations you will receive a letter in the post

To see the full current recommended immunisation schedule please visit the NHS choices website.

If you feel your child has missed any of their immunisations then please contact the surgery on 01920 468777 to discuss this with one of our team

For most women the majority of their antenatal care will be at the surgery with regular midwife appointments, however you will need to choose a hospital for your blood tests, scans and delivery.

Our patients usually choose the Lister Hospital in Stevenage or Princess Alexander Hospital in Harlow. Other choices are available, such as the Rosie in Cambridge.

You should contact the hospitals directly to organise your initial booking appointment to reduce delays in getting your first blood tests and scan.

For the Lister hospital please click the link https://www.enherts-tr.nhs.uk/services/maternity/self-referral/

For Princess Alexander Hospital please click the link https://www.pah.nhs.uk/maternity-services

It is recommended that all pregnant women take a folic acid (400mcg) and vitamin D (10mcg) supplement throughout their pregnancy.

Pregnant women are also eligible for routine vaccinations: flu, whooping cough (20 weeks) and RSV (28 weeks). Please contact our reception team to organise these vaccinations.

More general information about what to expect during your pregnancy can be found below:

Healthy diet and lifestyle advice in pregnancy

What to expect in your pregnancy

Our doctors are happy to support women through their pregnancy and if you have any concerns or would like specific advice please speak to our reception team for advice on how to arrange an appointment.

Please note that MatB1 forms (maternity certificates) are only available through the midwifery team.