The catheter, the drape and the preparation
What happens to your body in the twenty minutes before the cut.
An intravenous line is placed. Your abdomen is washed with antiseptic. A urinary catheter is inserted, usually after the spinal so you do not feel it, and it stays until the next morning. Hair may be clipped, not shaved. A drape is raised at chest level.
Ask for a clear drape, or for the drape to be lowered at the moment of birth, if you want to see your baby born. Many hospitals offer this and simply do not mention it.
Covered in the essential classes
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This page is educational. It supports the conversation with your own clinicians. It is not consent to any treatment, and it cannot assess you. If you are worried about a symptom now, see urgent warning signs.