Obstetric care in Latvia
pregnancy care, midwives and where to give birth
- Certification check: State register of medical practitioners (opens in a new window)
- The rules are set by Cabinet Regulation No. 611 (opens in a new window)
- Noticed outdated info? Report it
An obstetrician-gynaecologist follows the progress of a pregnancy, answers questions about tests, and helps prepare for the birth. The doctor tells you when an in-person visit is needed.
The consultation happens over video, so it works the same in Riga, Daugavpils, Liepāja, Jelgava, Jūrmala, Ventspils and Rēzekne.
No verified doctor in this specialty yet
We check every certificate by hand, so the list grows step by step. Choose another specialty or start with a family doctor.
Who provides obstetric care in Latvia
Latvia has no separate medical specialty called "obstetrician". The full specialty title is "Ginekologs, dzemdību speciālists", meaning gynaecologist and obstetrician, and it has its own page. Pregnancy and birth care involves:
- Gynaecologist and obstetrician
- confirms the pregnancy, manages pregnancy and birth, and performs operative deliveries.
- Midwife
- independently organises and leads physiological pregnancy, physiological birth and the postnatal period, and cares for the healthy newborn.
- Family doctor
- can carry out some antenatal visits in a low-risk pregnancy.
The practitioner list we currently have contains these midwives: Anete Polanska; Diāna Fodina; Elīna Butka; Karīna Karalkina; Kristiāna Klajuma-Andersone; Signe Grīslīte. Any individual practitioner can be checked in the state register (opens in a new window).
When to call 113 instead of booking
- Bleeding during pregnancy, especially with fresh blood.
- Waters breaking before 37 weeks.
- Regular, intensifying contractions before 37 weeks.
- Fetal movements stopping or markedly reducing in the second half of pregnancy.
- Rapid swelling of the face and hands with severe headache and visual disturbance.
- Seizures in a pregnant woman.
- High fever during pregnancy or after birth with foul-smelling discharge.
- Heavy bleeding after birth.
How pregnancy care works
Pregnancy care in Latvia is governed by Cabinet Regulation No. 611 on the provision of obstetric care. The clinical pathway published by the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control for low-risk pregnancy states that a visit may take place with a midwife, a gynaecologist and obstetrician, or a family doctor, each examining the pregnant woman according to those rules.
On registering the pregnancy, the woman is issued a mother's passport, which is worth carrying day to day.
If there was a pre-conception planning visit, earlier tests do not need repeating provided the pregnancy began less than six months after they were done.
Within her competence, the midwife issues referrals for blood and urine tests, listens to the fetal heart with a Doppler, performs cardiotocography, and refers for antenatal ultrasound screening.
Where you can give birth
The Centre for Disease Prevention and Control states that it does not matter which municipality the mother lives in or where she received antenatal care: she can give birth at any hospital maternity unit in Latvia.
Planned out-of-hospital birth is governed by point 8 of Cabinet Regulation No. 611. Public sources state that the main conditions are good health, confidence in one's ability to give birth, and a birth location no more than 30 minutes' drive from the nearest hospital maternity unit, along with specified equipment and a plan for transfer to hospital.
Glossary
- Mother's passport
- the document issued when the pregnancy is registered, recording its course.
- Cabinet Regulation No. 611
- the rules setting the scope of pregnancy and birth care.
- Low-risk pregnancy
- a pregnancy without additional risk factors, which a midwife may manage.
- Cardiotocography
- a recording of the fetal heart rate and uterine activity.
- Doppler
- the device used to listen to the fetal heartbeat.
- Contract birth
- an agreement for individual birth care with a named doctor or midwife.
- Water birth
- birth in a bath, requiring a contract with a midwife specialised in it.
- Postnatal period
- the time after birth during which state-funded care continues for up to 42 days.
How someone becomes a midwife or obstetrician
- Gynaecologist and obstetrician: six years of medical study, a doctor's degree and residency. That route is described on the gynaecology page.
- Midwife is a separate registered health profession with its own education route and entry in the practitioners register.
- A midwife's competence covers evidence-based, person-centred care, managing physiological pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period, caring for the healthy newborn and infant, and public education in sexual and reproductive health.
- If the midwife identifies a departure from physiological progress, she must inform the gynaecologist and obstetrician about the onward plan for the pregnancy.
- Entry in the practitioners register must be renewed every 5 years.
How to verify certification
- 1Open Health Inspectorate - register of medical practitioners (registri.vi.gov.lv) (opens in a new window).
- 2Enter the surname or practitioner identifier in the search box.
- 3For a doctor look for "Ginekologs, dzemdību speciālists"; for a midwife look for the profession "Vecmāte".
- 4Check the registration and certificate validity dates.
- 5If anything is unclear, see the register explanation page (opens in a new window).
Maternity units
Jelgava
- Antenatal care room at Jelgava City Hospital (opens in a new window)
where pregnancy monitoring is led by certified midwives from the maternity ward together with the ward's gynaecologists. The hospital states that midwives take the necessary samples during the visit itself, so no separate laboratory trip is needed. Further information on 63030352 on weekdays.
Liepāja
- Maternity ward at Liepāja Regional Hospital (opens in a new window)
offering antenatal monitoring, newborn care and postnatal consultations. The hospital states that all outpatient services relating to pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period are free. Water birth and contract birth with a single room are also available.
Obstetric care can be received at any hospital maternity unit in Latvia regardless of where you live.
How to choose
- Midwife or doctor. A low-risk pregnancy can be led by a midwife, and some women choose this for continuity. If risk factors appear, care passes to the gynaecologist and obstetrician.
- Distance. You may give birth at any maternity unit, so weigh the distance and the journey, particularly in winter.
- Tests on site. At some providers the midwife takes samples during the visit, saving a separate laboratory trip.
- Type of birth. If water birth or a contract birth interests you, ask whether the provider offers it and what contract is needed.
- Home birth. If you are considering a planned out-of-hospital birth, check the conditions in point 8 of Cabinet Regulation No. 611, including the distance to the nearest maternity unit.
What a visit looks like
- The first visit is with a gynaecologist to confirm the pregnancy, and carries the patient co-payment.
- Once the pregnancy is confirmed, subsequent pregnancy-related visits are state-funded.
- Bring the mother's passport if it has been issued, and previous test results.
- At the visit the midwife or doctor examines you in line with Cabinet Regulation No. 611, listens to the fetal heart, and performs cardiotocography where indicated.
- Questions about breastfeeding or the newborn's weight are handled at postnatal consultations, which are also state-funded.
Cost
To receive state-funded pregnancy care, you first see a gynaecologist to confirm the pregnancy, paying the patient co-payment. After that, gynaecologist and midwife consultations and the necessary tests during pregnancy and for up to 42 days postnatally are free. State-funded services unrelated to pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period still carry the patient co-payment.
| Service | Price |
|---|---|
| First visit to confirm pregnancy | patient co-payment EUR (Jelgava City Hospital (opens in a new window), price list checked 8 August 2026) |
| Gynaecologist and midwife consultations during pregnancy | 0.00 EUR (Jelgava City Hospital, price list checked 8 August 2026) |
| Postnatal care up to 42 days | 0.00 EUR (Jelgava City Hospital, price list checked 8 August 2026) |
| Outpatient services in pregnancy, birth and postnatally | 0.00 EUR (Liepāja Regional Hospital (opens in a new window), price list checked 8 August 2026) |
| Water birth | 0.00 with a midwife contract EUR (Liepāja Regional Hospital, price list checked 8 August 2026) |
| Individual birth care with a gynaecologist or midwife | by contract EUR (Jelgava City Hospital, price list checked 8 August 2026) |
Professional association and oversight
On the medical side the field is represented by the Latvian Association of Gynaecologists and Obstetricians (opens in a new window), registration number 40008061658, president Lāsma Līdaka.
Newborn care is represented by the Latvian Neonatology Society, registration number 40008103557, Latvian Association of Neonatologists (neonatologi.lv) (opens in a new window).
Certificates are issued by the Certification Council of the Latvian Medical Association (opens in a new window). The sector regulator is the Health Inspectorate.
Patient rights and complaints
If you have doubts about the quality of care, raise them first with the institution's management, which must operate a complaints and suggestions system. If that does not resolve it, a written submission goes to the Health Inspectorate no later than two years after the alleged infringement, and is reviewed within 30 days, extendable to four months in complex cases. The procedure is set out on the Health Inspectorate site (opens in a new window).
FAQ
Is pregnancy care free?
The first visit to confirm the pregnancy carries the patient co-payment. After that, pregnancy-related consultations and tests, and care for up to 42 days after birth, are free.
Do I have to give birth at the nearest hospital?
No. Obstetric care can be received at any hospital maternity unit in Latvia, regardless of where you live or where you had antenatal care.
Can a midwife manage the pregnancy?
Yes. In a low-risk pregnancy the visit may be with a midwife, a gynaecologist and obstetrician, or a family doctor.
What does a water birth cost?
Liepāja Regional Hospital states that water birth is free but requires a prior contract with a midwife specialised in bath births.
Is home birth allowed in Latvia?
Planned out-of-hospital birth is governed by point 8 of Cabinet Regulation No. 611, which sets conditions including the distance to the nearest maternity unit.
This page was reviewed by Sergejs Ponomarjovs, from the E-Medicīna team. More about us.
Sources, last-reviewed footer and fact-check
Last reviewed: 8 August 2026
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