In addition to 'mum's' bag it definitely helps for the birth partner to be organised too, as it will minimise any additional stresses that you would rather do without on the day! 

Written by by Siobhán from hospitalbag.ie
When we think of “packing the hospital bag”, we immediately think of the bag that mum-to-be needs to pack which, let’s face it, is the most important!! However, it definitely helps for the birth partner to be organised too, as it will minimise any additional stresses that you would rather do without on the day! 
Here are some of the key items that, as a birth partner, you should consider having ready in advance:
  • ANNOUNCEMENT STRATEGY: Agree with mum-to-be your plan for announcing baby’s arrival. Some new mums prefer to wait a few hours and enjoy the time together with their newborn before sending any texts or making any phonecalls. Others are happy for the birth partner to send photos/texts while they are still in the delivery room. Whatever you decide, agree it and STICK TO IT! (on all 3 of my kid’s births, I had two announcement texts ready going into hospital – one if it was a boy and one if it was a girl – it made it so easy then to just hit the send button when the time came to announcing…sad, I know!).
  • LOOSE CHANGE: Whether to buy food or drinks from vending machine (particularly if you are in the hospital late at night when the shop/ coffee shop is closed) or to pay for parking, you can never have too many coins on you.
  • FOOD & WATER :While you will most likely be able to buy food of some sort at the hospital, your options may be limited late at night particularly. So, it might be a good idea to have something that slowly releases energy, like a protein bar, breakfast bar etc packed. Water is also preferable than fizzy drinks for keeping you (and mum!) hydrated.
  • PHONE CHARGER: Particularly if labour is long, you may find that you fill the hours (when you are not mopping mum-to-be’s forehead, obviously!!) on your phone and therefore be in need of a charger. Whether it’s a power pack or an actual charger, this is a really important item to pack – the last thing you want is to have run out of charge and not be able to take those crucial photos when baby is first born!
  • READING MATERIAL: It is a good idea to bring something to read in case mum-to-be is resting or is not up to talking. (one of my abiding memories of labour on my first born – all 26 hours of it – was my husband reading Andre Agassi’s autobiography! He will never be allowed to live it down!)
  • CHANGE OF TOP/CLOTHES: If you plan on having skin to skin contact with the baby immediately after birth, you will most likely need a fresh top afterwards. Even if you don’t have skin to skin contact, in the case of a long labour, you may want to freshen up and change top/clothes without having to leave the hospital.
  • ITEMS FOR FRESHENING UP See above – if you are in the hospital for a long time, you may want to freshen up – e.g. deodorant, toothbrush & toothpaste etc.
Siobhán Stack is the owner of hospitalbag.ie, an online business offering great quality sets of matching bags, along with the key hospital bag essentials. Visit www.hospitalbag.ie for full details  

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