HEDI - Maternity Record (Mutterpass) Pages 15 and 16: Final Check-Up

All important data relating to the delivery and the weeks afterwards are entered on the last two pages of your maternity record (Mutterpass). This information affects both the mother and the baby. This final report is called epicrisis in medical terminology.

Course of pregnancy and birth

The entries in the first section of page 15 give a brief overview of the course of pregnancy. The second section deals with delivery. Doctors and midwives will enter any important data about the birth process here. For example, they will note what the baby’s position was before delivery, or whether it was delivered via spontaneous birth, by c-section or with the aid of a vacuum device. In the case of a delivery with a vacuum device, the abbreviation VE for ‘vacuum extraction’ is noted. The newborn’s check-up results are also documented on page 15. This includes entries about the baby's height, length and weight, blood values and what’s known as the Apgar score. The name of the test is derived from the first letters of the different areas that are closely observed one, five and ten minutes after birth. In English, these are the baby’s ‘appearance, pulse, grimace (i.e. facial movement), activity and respiration’. In Germany, each function is scored with one, two or three points respectively (though you may be used to a scoring system of zero to two in other countries). The test provides information about whether the baby has come through the birth well.

The postpartum period

The third section on page 15 will document how mother and baby are doing in the postpartum period. In some cases, you may get a shot of anti-D prophylaxis when you’re in labour. This is necessary if the mother's blood is Rh negative and the baby's is Rh positive. It prevents rhesus incompatibility from occurring if the mother chooses to become pregnant again. A direct Coombs test is used to see if the newborn has antibodies in its blood and is also documented accordingly.

Features of the postpartum period

On page 16 of your maternity record (Mutterpass), your midwife or doctor will write down whether you or the baby have had any health complications in the first 6 to 8 weeks after delivery. They will note your blood pressure readings. They will check the amount of haemoglobin in your blood and document details about your urine levels. On this last page pertaining to your current pregnancy it will also be noted whether you have already been to the U3 check-up with your baby and whether there were any abnormalities. This is important for later pregnancies. The U3 is the third check-up for your baby, which takes place in the fourth or fifth week of the baby's life. All your baby’s check-ups are documented in the yellow child’s check up booklet. Any costs for this are covered by your baby's health insurance.

Maternity Record (Mutterpass) Pages 15 and 16: Final Check-Up

Course of pregnancy and birth

The postpartum period

Features of the postpartum period

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