Fletcher Allen, a Vermont university hospital and medical center, serves all of
Vermont and the northern New York region. Located in Burlington, Fletcher Allen is a regional, academic healthcare center and teaching hospital in alliance with the University of Vermont.
Services
Our well trained and diversified staff is available to meet the variety of obstetrical problems encountered in all stages of pregnancy.Components of Maternal Fetal Medicine Service (MFMS) Care
Prenatal Care
- Round-the-clock telephone consultation service
- Ambulatory obstetrical consultation service for management of potential or actual high risk obstetrical problems
- Arrangement for transport of maternity cases with serious complications
- In-home health surveillance services
- Social services
- Dietary services
- Genetic counseling services through the Vermont Regional Genetics Center
- Amniocentesis
- Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS)
- Ultrasound
- Percutaneous Fetal Umbilical Blood Sampling (PUBS)
- Nonstress/ Stress testing (NST/CST)
- Doppler Flow Studies
- Biophysical Profile
- Remote review of fetal monitor tracings by telephone
- Intensive care during labor and birth
- Emergency cesarean section capability with a short start-up time
- Close proximity of Intensive Care Nursery to Labor Suite
- Close follow-up for high risk obstetrical patients by the MFMS staff during the immediate postpartum period
There are three primary modalities for interaction with the MFMS
1. Consultation
This generally consists of one to two office visits to the MFMS out-patient facility during the antepartum period. Management recommendations are made in writing and/or by phone to the referring physician, who continues to be the primary care provider.
2. Referral
At the request of the referring physician, the MFMS may accept primary responsibility for the continued obstetrical care of the patient. This most frequently occurs early in pregnancy or midpregnancy, or in some cases as late as the third trimester.
3. Transport
At the request of the referring physician, obstetrical patients may be admitted directly to the Labor and Delivery Unit of the Fletcher Allen Birth Center, generally for emergent reasons which appear during midpregnancy, third trimester or during the intrapartum period.
Guidelines for consults, referrals and transports, which detail the disorders for which a referring physician might seek these services, have been developed and are available for general use.
Educational Services
The MFMS continues to participate in the Vermont/New Hampshire Regional Perinatal Program, the major goal of which is the reduction in maternal and infant death and illness rates. Each of our referring hospitals receives one "transport" conference per year in which patient management issues and outcomes are discussed. Many hospitals also participate in the "Perinatal Statistics Review" where maternal-fetal medicine and neonatology will review selected perinatal outcome statistics. Education programs also include fetal monitoring conferences.
Research
MFMS staff are actively involved in both clinical and basic science research.
