Example photograph.
Every week someone walks into the shop at 38 weeks with a list from their clinic and a slightly worried look. The list is long, the items are specific and the bag is still empty. This is not a failing; nobody tells you how much a Nigerian maternity ward expects you to bring. So here is what we have learned from nine years of packing bags with Agodi families.
Stage one, around week 32: the things you cannot borrow
Your antenatal card, your hospital registration and either your HMO card or proof that you have paid. Put them in one clear folder. Add a sheet of paper with your blood group, your doctor's name and two phone numbers. If you arrive in a hurry, this folder is what the nurse at the desk will ask for first.
At the same time, wash the baby clothes in a mild wash and dry them in the shade. Fold them into a zipped bag so the dust stays out during harmattan.
Stage two, by week 36: the ward list
Most teaching, general and private hospitals in Ibadan hand out their own list. They differ, but these items appear on nearly all of them:
- A mackintosh sheet and two delivery mats
- Two packs of maternity pads and some cotton wool
- A small basin, a soft towel and baby soap
- Methylated spirit and a cord clamp, if the ward asks
- Two wrappers, one of which will tie the baby on the way home
Ask your clinic for their own list and tick it against ours. Our checklist marks which items we stock, so you can top up in one trip or one WhatsApp message.
The things nobody lists
A flask, because hot water is not always available at night. A power bank and a torch, because a birth can run through a power cut. Snacks for your partner. Slippers. And a printed list of phone numbers, because the phone with all the numbers is the phone that will be flat.
Where to keep the bag
By the door, not in the wardrobe. Tell the person who will drive you where it is and agree two routes to the hospital, one for the morning rush on Secretariat Road and one for later in the day.
This piece is general information from a shop, not medical advice. Speak to your midwife or doctor about your own care.
