We want to offer a hand to hold and a heart to understand.
Birth is one of the most important and life changing experiences a person and their family will experience. We believe that birth is a natural and physiological process, and we will work with you to birth your baby in a calm, safe and supportive environment.
The Lotus Team aims to provide personalised, holistic care either at home or in the Lotus Midwifery Unit. We provide choice, creating a birth plan with you so that you feel safe, supported and fully informed.
Our wish for Lotus is that families feel welcomed, safe and listened to. We aim to make every birth the best it can be for those giving birth here in Leeds.
What is Lotus about?
We provide low risk labour care both at home and in hospital.
Our Lotus Unit is a midwifery led unit at Leeds General Infirmary which has three rooms (including two pool rooms). We try to create a “home from home” with the emphasis being on active birth in a calmer environment.
The rooms are beautifully decorated with birth affirmations, music systems and aromatherapy diffusers. The unit also includes a small multi purpose ‘snug’ where you can make refreshments, mobilise, or wait for your final checks before going home.
Please watch our video on the Lotus Unit for further information.
Lotus Midwifery Unit – Leeds Maternity
The Lotus Unit is a separate low-risk maternity unit, which is an extension of the delivery suite at the LGI, also known as the alongside unit. During your antenatal care, this will be discussed with you, as it might influence the hospital you choose to have your antenatal care.
The Lotus Unit consists of three rooms with varied facilities, including birth pools, soft beds, floor mats, and balls. There are low lights, electric candles, and ensuite bathrooms to help keep you and your birth partners more comfortable and relaxed during your stay.
If you contact the Maternity Assessment Centre in labour, and your preference is to have your baby at the Lotus Unit, you should mention this to the midwives as the rooms cannot be booked in advance. If the advice is to have your baby continuously monitored throughout your labour, then the Lotus Unit may not be for you, as we do not use this form of monitoring in the Low Risk Unit. If this is known in advance and you would like to speak to a member of the team, we’ll be happy to talk you through your options.
Massage, hypnobirth techniques, position changes, heat packs, TENS, and gas and air can all be used within the Lotus Suite. We can also provide morphine, but this cannot be administered in the pool due to the potential for making you sleepy and therefore unable to support yourself fully in the water.
If you intend to use a TENS, they can be hired and brought in with you, as we cannot guarantee they will be available. It’s best to start using them from early labour, often before you come into hospital.
The environment is set up to help you achieve a low-risk birth with as few interventions as possible. You can bring support, such as pillows, a speaker and playlist, along with snacks and plenty of fluids to help you through. Remember, anything electrical needs to be battery-powered, as we are unable to plug things in without a pre-check.
Numbers of birth partners remain the same as for the rest of the delivery suite, so ask your community midwife about birth partners in labour.
We would suggest a birth plan for any family approaching labour, but these are things you can consider and incorporate into that plan. For further information, see the Home Birth Lotus Page of ‘Meet the Team’ or speak to your community midwife.
Contact us
If you are thinking about having a home birth or you would like more information about having your baby in our Lotus Midwifery Unit please talk to your community midwife or email: [email protected]