Antenatal booking data
- Births and maternity
The antenatal booking collection (ABC) dataset was set up at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
PHS worked with NHS boards to set up this national data return providing information on women booking for antenatal care.
ABC is based on data recorded by midwives in local clinical information systems when a woman ‘books’ for maternity care.
The booking appointment is the first planned and structured contact a midwife has with a pregnant woman. It is used to assess her history and needs so that local maternity services can provide further care such as an early pregnancy scan and antenatal screening tests.
The booking appointment can also give women further information about how they can keep themselves and their baby healthy during pregnancy, and to help them plan labour and birth.