Women’s Health Services

We offer a complete and comprehensive Women’s Health service. Our female doctors are specialists in this area and our Practice Nurse is a registered midwife. Women’s Health practices includes fertility advice, family planning, contraception, pregnancy care, breast examinations, STIs, cervical screening and menopause.

• Family Planning & Contraception – Pill, Patch, Vaginal Ring, Implanon, Mirena / IUS, Copper Coil, Non Hormonal Coil, Injection, Emergency and Morning After Pill*
• Pregnancy Care – Testing, advice on getting pregnant, care during pregnancy up until delivery, care post-delivery.
• Cervical Smear Testing – CervicalCheck
• STIs (Sexually Transmitted Infections) – screening (blood & swab tests) and treatment including cryotherapy and safe sex advice
• Menopause – advice, investigation, treatment of symptoms. See dedicated Cork Menopause Clinic section for further information.

*The Morning After Pill can be taken for up to 5 days after unprotected sexual intercourse. The emergency copper coil is also available and can be inserted up to 5 days after unprotected sexual intercourse. Please seek medical advice regarding the best treatment option for you.

CervicalCheck

We participate in the State-sponsored cervical screening programme Cervical Check. This programme allows women aged 25 to 60 to avail of a free cervical smear test. This is a method of detecting abnormal (pre-cancerous) cells in the cervix of the womb in order to prevent cervical cancer. Cervical screening is not a test for cancer; it is a test to check the health of the cells of the cervix. Most women’s test results show that everything is normal but for 1 in 20 women, the test will show some abnormalities. Most of these will not lead to cervical cancer but require further investigation and perhaps treatment to prevent them becoming cancerous. In May 2018, the CervicalCheck programme came under much public scrutiny and, as a result, the programme was completely overhauled. In spite of the bad press the service received, our doctors would still strongly recommend cervical screening and participation in the programme.

The new service was due to be rolled out with effect from 1st April 2020 but COVID-19 has delayed this. Currently the date on which the new CervicalCheck programme will commence is unclear. Further information can be found at HSE – Cervical-Screening and once we know more we will update this page. In the meantime, if you have a concern, do not hesitate in contacting us / your GP for advice.

State-sponsored Pregnancy & Maternity Care Programme

The HSE Mother & Infant Care Scheme provides an agreed programme of care free of charge to all expectant mothers (ordinarily resident in Ireland) using a combination of your own General Practitioner (GP) and a midwife/hospital obstetrician. Under this scheme your GP provides about half of your ante-natal care and you only visit the hospital early in your pregnancy and for a reduced number of visits after that. This “combined care” programme provides 6 to 7 ante-natal visits during which you will be monitored to ensure your pregnancy is progressing as it should and that any problems relating to the pregnancy will be attended to.

Once your pregnancy is confirmed, your GP will provide you with an application form which both you and your GP should complete and then return to your local health board where it will be processed for inclusion in the scheme. Typically, your schedule of maternity care will be divided up as set out in the table below but this may be modified by your GP and / or Obstetrician if indicated.

At each ante-natal visit, you will provide a urine sample, your blood pressure will be taken and you will be examined. Any concerns or anxieties you might have should be discussed at these visits. Most maternity hospitals run courses of ante-natal classes which you and your partner can attend. These classes allow you to learn about what to expect at the birth, pain relief options available, breastfeeding and support and advice on looking after your health during pregnancy. You are entitled to take paid time off work to attend ante-natal appointments and ante-natal classes under the Maternity Protection Regulations 2004. Ante-natal classes held by your local public maternity hospital are free of charge but you will need to book your place. It is usual to start your ante-natal classes from about 30 weeks.

This care programme also extends to your newborn baby for six weeks after birth. It includes a 2-week post-delivery baby only check and a 6-week post-delivery check for both mother and baby. These post-delivery visits ensure that your baby is developing normally and give you an opportunity to discuss any problems you may have.

Click on this link for more information on Cork University Maternity Hospital’s maternity care service: www.cuh.hse.ie/Cork-University-Maternity-Hospital/Maternity-Care/Antenatal-Care/