ASSESSING FETAL AND MATERNAL HEALTH:

PRENATAL CARE

Prenatal Care
- essential for ensuring the overall health of newborns and their
mothers
- major strategy for helping to reduce the number of low – birth weight
babies born yearly (Wessel, Endrikat and Buscher, 2003)
- ideally, it begins during mother’s childhood

Prenatal Visit
- a time for additional health promotion, pregnancy education, and
development of a positive pattern of healthy behaviors for the family
to use in the future.

Health Assessment during the First Prenatal Visit

-it is important because lack of it is associated with the birth of
preterm infants and various complications for the women.

Initial Interview
-establishing rapport
-gaining information about the women’s physical and psychosocial
health
-obtaining the basis for anticipatory guidance for the pregnancy

COMPONENTS OF THE HEALTH HISTORY

1. Demographic Data
-includes name, age, address, telephone number, religion, and
health insurance information.

2. Chief Concern
-inquire about the date of her last menstrual period and whether
she has pregnancy test or use a home test kit.

3. Family Profile
-help you get to know a women earlier, identify support persons,
shape the nature and kind of questions asked, and evaluate the
possible impact of the client’s culture on care.

4. History of Past Illnesses

-past condition may become active during or immediately
following pregnancy
5. History of Family Illnesses
-helps to identify potential problems in the mother during
pregnancy or in the infant at birth.

6. Day History/Social Profile

-woman’s current nutrition, elimination, sleep, recreation, and
interpersonal interactions.

7. Gynecologic History
-obtain information about her age of menarche and how well she
was prepared for it as a normal part of life.

8. OB History
-history of previous pregnancies
-previous miscarriages or abortion

9. Review of Systems
-use systemic approach, such as head-to-toe assessment

Physical Examination
-includes inspection of body systems, with emphasis on changes that
occur during pregnancy or that could signal a developing.

Baseline Height and Weight and the Vital Sign Measurement

-establish a baseline for future comparison

ASSESSMENT OF SYSTEMS

1. General Appearance and Mental Status

-it reveals how people feel about themselves by the manner in
which they dress, the way they speak, and the body posture they
assume.

2. Measurement of Fundal Height and Fetal Heart Sounds

3. Pelvic Internal and Examination

-reveal information on the health of both internal and external
reproductive organs.

4. Laboratory Assessment
-confirm general health and rule out sexually transmitted
infection that could injure the growing fetus.