Maternity Triage (Postpartum)
Discharge
This handout has postpartum care resources and information to support you after you leave the maternity triage department or the emergency department for postpartum concerns. Learn what to watch for, when to return to the hospital, and when to call for help.
Learn about caring for yourself at home
Healthy Parents, Healthy Children is Alberta’s guide for pregnancy, postpartum, parenting, and child development. Ask your healthcare provider how to get a copy.
Important phone numbers
- Call 911 for any medical emergency.
- Call the New Parent and Newborn Line at 1-833-805-2229 (1-833-805-BABY) anytime day or night for expert postpartum information and information for babies under 2 months old.
- Call Health Link at 811 for other medical concerns or if you need health advice.
- Call or text 988: Canada’s Suicide Crisis Helpline if you have any thoughts of harming yourself or others.
Follow-up care
After going home from the maternity triage department or emergency department:
- Contact your maternity care provider or family doctor and talk with them about your visit to the hospital.
- Go to your regularly scheduled postnatal appointments.
- Follow any instructions that you got at discharge (when you left the hospital).
If you have questions or concerns about your health or pregnancy, talk with your maternity care provider or call Health Link at 811 anytime, day or night.
For postpartum and newborn concerns, help is available anytime, day or night, by calling the New Parent and Newborn Line at 1-833-805-2229 (1-833-805-BABY).
When to call 911
Learn the signs of an emergency after childbirth.
Call 911 right away if you have:
- chest pain or trouble breathing
- sudden heavy bleeding running down your leg
- loss of consciousness or a seizure
- thoughts of harming yourself or anyone else
When to go back to the hospital
Go back to the nearest maternity triage department or emergency department if you have any of the following:
Soaking a full pad in 1 hour or passing clots larger than an egg
Severe pain in your abdomen (belly) or incision (cut) that doesn’t get better with medicine
Fever, chills, redness that is spreading, not improving, or accompanied by additional symptoms listed here, pus, or worsening pain
Very high blood pressure (160/110 or higher) or having a new headache, vision problems, or right upper belly pain that doesn’t go away
Difficulty or pain with peeing
One leg swollen more than the other
If you are not sure if you should go back to the hospital, call Health Link at 811 to talk to a registered nurse and get advice and instructions.
When thinking about going back to the maternity triage department or emergency department, plan for weather conditions, travel times, traffic, and the distance from your house to the hospital.
To see this information online and learn more, visit MyHealth.Alberta.ca/health/aftercareinformation/pages/conditions.aspx?hwid=custom.ab_obs_triage_postpartum_discharge_inst.
For 24/7 nurse advice and general health information call Health Link at 811.
Current as of: August 27, 2026
Author: Provincial Perinatal Group, Women’s Health
This material is not a substitute for the advice of a qualified health professional. This material is intended for general information only and is provided on an "as is", "where is" basis. Although reasonable efforts were made to confirm the accuracy of the information, Alberta Health Services does not make any representation or warranty, express, implied or statutory, as to the accuracy, reliability, completeness, applicability or fitness for a particular purpose of such information. Alberta Health Services expressly disclaims all liability for the use of these materials, and for any claims, actions, demands or suits arising from such use.
