We have updated and improved the national information we provide about the ultrasound scans we offer to women during pregnancy.
All the changes we’ve made to the early pregnancy scan and 20-week scan information sheets are a direct result of feedback from health professionals and other stakeholders.
The next national print runs will use these new versions. In the meantime, local screening providers can safely use up stock of the previous versions. Please do not recycle or destroy old stock.
Nationally, we print the 2 publications in tear-off pad format for local screening providers to then supply directly to pregnant women.
The many improvements to the wording include:
- talking about the 3 early pregnancy scan conditions – Down’s syndrome, Edwards’ syndrome and Patau’s syndrome – separately rather than together
- using the word ‘chance’ instead of ‘risk’
- saying ‘developing as expected’ instead of ‘developing normally’
- using the words ‘unexpected development’ instead of ‘abnormality’
- saying the baby has the ‘condition being screened for’ instead of the baby having ‘an abnormality’
We are encouraging all health professionals to use the above changes in wording and terminology when discussing screening options with women and to make sure any locally produced literature is consistent with this.
Throughout the 2 information sheets, we have changed the headings from questions to statements because we know statements are easier to read and understand.
We have also improved the layout of the resources to improve readability and renamed the ‘mid-pregnancy scan’ sheet the ‘11 physical conditions (the 20-week scan)’ in line with the updated Screening tests for you and your baby booklet.
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