Hospital Bag Checklist Australia: What to Pack for Labour & Birth

What are the hospital bag essentials?

The hospital bag essentials are the eight items listed below.

• Medicare card: plus private health insurance details, if you have cover.
• Pregnancy health record: the card or handheld record from your antenatal care.
• Regular medicines: The Royal Women's Hospital in Melbourne asks you to bring them with an up-to-date list, vitamins included.
• Phone and long charging cable: or a battery pack.
• Maternity pads: Canberra Health Services asks for two packets, and The Royal Women's Hospital checklist lists three.
• Comfortable clothes and underwear: for labour, the ward and the trip home.
• Baby's nappies and going-home outfit: check whether your hospital supplies nappies.
• Fitted baby capsule: an approved rear-facing restraint. The Royal Hospital for Women in Sydney asks for it to be installed in the car before labour.

When should you pack your hospital bag?

The Better Health Channel advises packing your hospital bag at around 36 weeks of pregnancy. Canberra Health Services asks for the bag to be ready at least a month before your baby is due. Westmead Private Hospital notes that babies can arrive early. The Better Health Channel also suggests getting organised from early in the third trimester, after 29 weeks, by setting items aside.

What should mum pack in her hospital bag?

Mum's hospital bag holds two sets of items: what you use in labour, and what you need on the ward after the birth. The Royal Hospital for Women asks for the after-birth items to go in a separate bag or at the bottom of the case, so the labour items stay on top.

What does mum need for labour?

For labour, mum needs clothes to labour in, snacks and drinks, grooming and cooling items, footwear, and any extras you plan to use.

• Loose labour clothes: an oversized t-shirt, a nightie or a sarong.
• Snacks and drinks: lollies to suck, such as jelly beans or barley sugar, and a water bottle with a straw.
• Grooming items: lip balm, hair ties and a brush.
• Non-aerosol water spray or small fan: to keep cool.
• Socks and footwear: slippers or thongs.
• Extras you plan to use: a heat pack of the type your hospital allows, massage oil, your own pillow, and music on your own device.
• TENS machine: only if you plan to use one.
• Birth plan: if you have one.

What does mum need after the birth?

After the birth, mum needs maternity pads, large comfortable underwear, nursing bras, front-opening nightwear and toiletries for the stay on the ward.

• Maternity pads: two to three packets, the range across the Canberra Health Services and Royal Women's Hospital lists. The Better Health Channel names super or maternity absorbency.
• Underwear: high-waisted full briefs in a dark colour, disposable or cotton. Canberra Health Services asks for several pairs, and Westmead Private Hospital asks for a week's supply.
• Maternity or nursing bras: the Better Health Channel advises two or three, without wires or seams.
• Breast pads and nipple cream: the cream only if you want it.
• Nightwear and day clothes: front-opening nightwear and a few changes of day clothes.
• Footwear for the ward: thongs or slippers. The Royal Women's Hospital asks you to wear footwear at all times.
• Toiletries: toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant and a hairbrush, with dry shampoo, hand sanitiser and moisturiser as optional extras.
• Sleep items: an eye mask and ear plugs.
• Black pen: Canberra Health Services asks for one to fill in your baby's feeding chart.
• Laundry bag: for dirty clothes.
• Contact list and notebook: phone numbers for the people you plan to tell, and a notebook for the first days.
• Going-home clothes: loose and comfortable.

What should you pack for your baby?

Pack nappies, wipes or cotton wool, clothes in sizes 0000 and 000, wraps, a light blanket and a going-home outfit for your baby.

• Nappies: Pregnancy, Birth and Baby and Mater put newborn use at 8 to 10 nappies a day, and Canberra Health Services asks for one to two packets.
• Wipes or cotton wool: advice differs. Canberra Health Services lists baby wipes, and the Better Health Channel suggests cotton wool or disposable cloth wipes instead of commercial baby wipes.
• Clothes for the stay: singlets and onesies or jumpsuits, a few sets across sizes 0000 and 000.
• Wraps: muslin wraps or swaddles.
• Blanket or bunny rug: lightweight.
• Going-home outfit: suited to the season.
• Hat, socks or booties: Red Nose advises taking the hat off indoors.
• Bottom cream and burp cloths: optional.
• Formula, bottles and teats: only if you plan to formula feed. Canberra Health Services asks formula-feeding parents to bring their own.
• Frozen expressed breastmilk or colostrum: only if you expressed before the birth. Canberra Health Services asks for it to be labelled and handed to the midwives, and Mater advises carrying it in a cooler with ice bricks.

What to pack for your baby also depends on what your hospital supplies.

What should your birth partner pack?

Your birth partner packs their own share of the bag: a change of clothes, enclosed shoes, snacks and drinks, and a phone charger.

• Change of clothes: in layers. The Royal Hospital for Women advises layers for air-conditioned wards.
• Enclosed shoes: Westmead Private Hospital and the Royal Hospital for Women both ask partners to bring them in case of a caesarean in theatre.
• Snacks and drinks: plus a pillow and headphones.
• Phone and charger.
• Toiletries and swimwear: both on the Pregnancy, Birth and Baby partner list.
• Their own medicines: any they take regularly.
• Cash and a card: for parking and vending machines.
• Car kit for the drive in: two old towels and a container. The Royal Hospital for Women lists them in case you are sick on the way.

Mater puts the documents, the contact list and the installed capsule on the birth partner's list.

Which documents should you bring?

Bring your Medicare card, your pregnancy health record and your hospital paperwork, plus your private health insurance details and birth plan if you have them.

• Medicare card.
• Pregnancy health record: Canberra Health Services calls it the maternity handheld record, and the name differs between states.
• Hospital paperwork: pre-admission forms and your obstetrician's details, if you have one.
• Private health insurance details: if you are insured.
• Birth plan or birth preferences: if you have written one.
• Photo ID: such as a driver's licence.

What else should you pack for a caesarean?

For a caesarean, the Better Health Channel advises packing large underwear that does not sit on the wound and clothes with no waistline, such as a loose dress. The other caesarean additions are listed below.

• Glasses: the Better Health Channel notes that contact lenses are not worn during a caesarean.
• Mouthwash and dry shampoo: for the time before you are able to get out of bed.
• Comfort food.
• Enclosed shoes for your partner: Westmead Private Hospital requires them in its operating theatres, including for an unplanned caesarean.

What does your hospital provide?

What your hospital provides depends on your hospital, so check its list before you pack. The Better Health Channel names nappies, blankets and maternity pads as items that differ between hospitals, along with what you are allowed to bring from home.

These are the policies of Canberra Health Services, a public health service in the ACT, and Westmead Private Hospital, a private hospital in NSW, on four items:

The two hospitals are examples, not a rule for public or private hospitals.

What should you leave at home?

Leave valuables at home: Canberra Health Services says it is not responsible for lost valuables, and The Royal Women's Hospital asks for them to be sent home. The items below are restricted or checked at named hospitals.

• Candles and hot water bottles: Canberra Health Services does not allow them.
• Wheat heat packs: Westmead Private Hospital allows gel heat packs only.
• Electrical equipment: The Royal Women's Hospital asks you to tell the nurse or midwife about any you want to use.
• Hairdryers: Westmead Private Hospital's maintenance team checks them before use.

What do you need for the trip home?

For the trip home by car, you need an approved rear-facing baby capsule, fitted before labour, and going-home clothes for you and your baby. The capsule rules and the clothes are listed below.

• Approved restraint: the NSW Government names Australian/New Zealand Standard AS/NZS 1754 as the standard an approved restraint meets. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) lists AS/NZS 1754 as a mandatory standard.
• Rear-facing: under NSW law, babies up to 6 months old must travel in a rear-facing child car seat.
• Fitted before labour: the Royal Hospital for Women asks for the capsule to be installed before labour.
• Professional fitting: the NSW Government advises an authorised restraint fitter or a fitting station.
• Checks before you leave: Canberra Health Services says it cannot check your car seat before you go home, and names Kidsafe ACT as a service able to install and check one.
• Your baby's hat: Red Nose advises removing it as soon as you come indoors or enter a warm car, so your baby does not overheat.
• Your own clothes: a loose, comfortable outfit.

How long will you stay in hospital?

How long you stay in hospital ranges from hours to days, depending on your hospital and how you give birth. Canberra Health Services recommends going home within 6 to 24 hours after a vaginal birth when you and your baby are well. The Royal Hospital for Women plans for about 3 days after a vaginal birth and 5 days after a caesarean. Canberra Health Services lists a caesarean, a medical complication or a concern about your baby as reasons for a longer stay. The Royal Women's Hospital checklist advises packing for more days than you expect. On admission, The Royal Women's Hospital asks you to show staff a list of your medicines.

Should you bring your vitamins and medicines to hospital?

Yes, bring your vitamins and medicines to hospital. The Royal Women's Hospital asks you to bring all of your medicines and to keep the list up to date. The Royal Women's Hospital says vitamins are just as important to mention as prescription medicines. The Better Health Channel advises asking your doctor about your medicines, including vitamins, and notes that the hospital may provide everything you need.

Canberra Health Services gives you any medicines or scripts you need before you go home.