Services

Obstetric Medicine works with obstetrics, maternal-fetal medicine and general medicine. The Eastern Health Obstetric Medicine Service was established to provide co-ordinated medical input into pre-pregnancy, antenatal and post-natal care of women with medical disorders, risks or complications.

We work closely with our obstetric and midwifery colleagues to provide joint collaborative and consultative care to both outpatients and inpatients. We provide comprehensive care in:

• Pre-pregnancy counseling, clarification and optimization of medical disorders
• Management of medical disorders and their complications during pregnancy
• Referral to, and liaison with, other medical or surgical subspecialties during pregnancy
• Ensuring integration and continuity of care / medical case management for acutely unwell pregnant patients who may require input from a variety of specialties
• Liaison with specialist medical staff within and outside Eastern Health who have been providing care to the pregnant woman pre-pregnancy
• Post-natal follow-up of ongoing or complicated medical disorders (often with subsequent transfer to appropriate/pre-existing sub-specialty care)

Eligibility Criteria

Pregnant women, post-partum women and women considering pregnancy who have specific medical issues.

Referral Information

We take direct GP referrals and in-house referrals from Eastern Health’s Maternity Service, as well as offering phone advice and support to GPs regarding patients of our service, where necessary.  

Specialist Clinics
We have a weekly, multidisciplinary, High-Risk Pregnancy Clinic staffed by

• Obstetric physicians with background specialties not only in obstetric medicine, but also in nephrology, haematology, and gastroenterology;
• Consultant obstetricians with expertise in maternal-fetal medicine
• Clinical midwife consultants.

This clinic is located at Box Hill Hospital but is available to all pregnant women across Eastern Health and its catchment.  This clinic is a one-stop shop for our patients as we are able to liaise closely with other sub-specialties (both medical and surgical) within Eastern Health as required. Referrals are triaged weekly and urgent patients can be seen that week.  Referrals should be discussed directly with our registrar or consultant if thought to require in-patient admission.  Whenever possible, we will see women for pre-pregnancy counselling and post-partum follow-up, to allow for continuity of care.

For urgent referrals or advice, please discuss with the Obstetric Medicine / Renal Registrar or Consultant-on-Call via the Eastern Health contact centre on 1300 342 355.  

For referrals that are not considered urgent, please fax a referral to antenatal clinic on (03) 9975 6663.  Good quality information will ensure the referral is appropriately triaged for a timely review.  Please include all relevant information and results. If an interpreter is required, please indicate this, as well as the language required.

We routinely write letters to GPs after patients are seen in our clinic, and detailed discharge summaries are written and sent following each admission.

Frequently Asked Questions

Obstetric Medicine Specialist Clinic