See a doctor early in your pregnancy and have regular checkups. Maintain good prenatal care, including proper nutrition. Educate yourself about labour, caesarean and other birth-related topics. Midwives in Alberta are registered and certified under the Health Disciplines Act but their services are not funded by Alberta Health Care.

As a parent, you are entitled to unpaid job-protected maternity and/or parental leave from your employment in order to care for your new child. You may also be entitled to Maternity and Parental Benefits through Employment Insurance.

The Birth Registration Form is usually filled out at the hospital and then forwarded by the hospital to Vital Statistics. The birth registration must be sent to the Vital Statistics office within 10 days of the date of the child's birth.

Vital Statistics uses the information on the Registration of Birth Form to create an official Certificate of Birth. You will need this certificate for many purposes and should order one soon after the birth.

The baby's Alberta Health Care number will be assigned at the hospital and you will automatically receive the AHC card in the mail. Contact Alberta Health Care if you do not receive your card. If you do not deliver your baby in a hospital, you should fill out a Notice of Change form to add a dependant to your Alberta Health Care coverage.

Even though it will be many years before your child needs a Social Insurance number for employment, you may want to apply for a Social Insurance Number for other identification purposes.

Since December 11, 2001, all children who travel need their own passport. You are now required to complete a separate application form for each child requiring a passport, including newborns.