Postnatal hospital stay and going home

After birth, you and your child will be closely monitored by our midwives and doctors for some time.

The average time spent in hospital is one to three days. If the birth was uncomplicated and the newborn is healthy, you can leave the maternity hospital as early as six hours after delivery. In the case of early discharge, we offer a postnatal home visit by a midwife. The midwife and paediatrician will give you advice about feeding and taking care of your baby before you go home. You can find the newborn’s birth epicrisis and immunisation passport on the Health Portal.

If the age of the newborn allows (more than 48 h), they will be screened  and immunised before going home. If the family goes home earlier than 48 h after birth, a follow-up appointment with the paediatrician is scheduled for the newborn. 

You must register the birth and give the child a name within one month of the birth at the latest. This can be done via the e-population register. You can also submit a paper application to the municipality or city government at your place of residence.

Neonatology Department

The neonatology department deals with the treatment and care of newborns with a complicated or premature birth. If the newborn requires further monitoring and treatment after birth, they will be admitted to the neonatology department. The department has intensive care family wards for newborns in need of treatment, where parents have the opportunity to stay with their child 24/7 and actively participate in their care. During this time, our paediatricians and paediatric nurses will strive to create comfortable conditions for the care, treatment and growth of newborns requiring special care. Our aim is to help create and maintain strong attachment bonds between the newborn and their parents from the very first moments of the newborn's life and throughout their stay in our department, regardless of the age and condition of the newborn.

The neonatology department has 14 beds (intensive care and neonatal beds). In order to ensure the best conditions for the monitoring and treatment of sick and premature newborns, the department is equipped with state-of-the-art incubators, monitors, and ventilators. The department provides a range of different sizes of clothes and nappies for your child.

The neonatal department treats 600-620 newborns a year. The department also employs a lactation and experience counsellor, physiotherapists, a clinical psychologist, and a crisis counsellor. 

Special care

Patients in the neonatology department need special care and attention. Our paediatric nurses are trained in the Newborn Individualised Developmental Care and Assessment Programme (NIDCAP), which ensures greater support for the newborn. We also ensure that the care and medical procedures for babies requiring special care is as convenient as possible. The keywords in modern intensive care for very premature newborns are intensive care based on the child’s individual needs and the transition from aggressive intensive care to milder intensive care. Thanks to the skilful work of our nurses and the specialist equipment, it is possible in our hospital to leave babies who only need monitoring in a regular room with their mother. Babies who have undergone intensive care are taken to the postnatal room to their mother as soon as the conditions of the baby and the mother allow.

The Neonatology Department of the Maternity Hospital of the Central Hospital works together with Tallinn Children's Hospital.