Maternal and child health - visit 1 - first visit at home

Congratulations on becoming a new parent! This is your first key age and stage visit with a maternal and child health nurse – there are 10 visits in total from the birth of your baby to when your child is three and a half years. On this first visit, a nurse from your local community usually comes to your home.

The rest of the appointments will be at a in your municipality.

The purpose of these visits is to check how you and your child are progressing, obtain advice and address any issues you may have. This book belongs to you and your baby and is full of information about early child development, and services and support. Make sure you take your green book with you each time you see your nurse so you can jot down any issues, and record information on your baby’s growth and development.

If you don’t have a green book, let your nurse know.

What happens at my first maternal and child health visit? This visit is a chance for you and your maternal and child health nurse to get to know each other and talk about any concerns. Topics covered in this visit will include: and wellbeing.

At each key age and stage visit you will be given handouts relating to the topics covered.

See the tip sheets below for this information

Safe sleeping: sleep baby safely and reduce the risk of sudden unexpected death in infancy, Red Nose, United States What is my baby doing at this key age and stage? Even at this very young age, your newborn is ready to learn about the world around them. They might be: looking into your eyes. Don’t be afraid to tell your nurse about any other issues or concerns you may have.

It’s never too early to help your baby learn and develop – you may like to: smile and make facial expressions at them. maternal and child health service Don’t forget your ‘green book’ When your baby was born, you should have received a copy of My Health, Learning and Development – green book safe sleeping safety in the home immunisations feeding your baby (includes breastfeeding and bottle feeding) how play helps learning and development family relationships Tip sheets for this visit Maternal and child health service: safe sleeping checklist pdf 36 KB pdf 03 MB It’s not okay to shake babies, NAPCAN pdf 7 KB Making the most of childhood: The importance of the early years pdf 34 MB Nutrition - breastfeeding, Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital pdf 4 KB spending lots of time sleeping, feeding and crying turning their eyes towards lights and sounds making sudden jerky movements when asleep grasping your fingers when you place them in your baby’s hand What to tell your nurse Activity ideas for this key age and stage respond quickly and lovingly when they seek your attention.