Prenatal classes
Our prenatal classes provide you with the information you need to give birth confidently and make informed decisions about your care.
All of our prenatal classes include access for both you and your support person. We encourage your support person to attend prenatal classes with you so they know what to expect when you go into labour and how to be involved in the postpartum period.
We offer a variety of small in-person prenatal classes as well as the option to take some classes virtually. Our classes include access to a variety of different prenatal workshop topics, including a workshop designed specifically for pregnant people having a scheduled caesarean birth.
The in-person prenatal series is a three-week series held at St. Paul’s Hospital. Registration includes a tour of the maternity unit and birthing rooms. The content covered in this series includes:
Week 1: Labour and Birth
Week 2: Postpartum and Baby Care
Week 3: Breastfeeding
Our instructors are registered nurses and are familiar with the hospital protocols. Our curriculum and content have been developed and tailored in partnership with our expert clinicians at St. Paul’s Hospital. The content is tailored to expectant parents registered to deliver at St. Paul’s Hospital, however, the classes are open and available to anyone who is pregnant.
For prenatal workshops, we recommend that you register for classes starting around your 28th week of pregnancy and have them completed by your 36th week of pregnancy.
To help us cover our costs, we charge for our classes. If the cost of the course is a barrier for you and you are delivering at St. Paul’s Hospital, please speak to your pregnancy health care provider who may be able to refer you to the prenatal program at no cost.
It’s much easier to do it from home rather than being in a hurry to be on time somewhere, especially when you have a small kid at home and your husband needs to go to work. So it worked perfectly! My daughter was sleeping while I was doing the workshop.
Available workshops
Workshop registration
Our prenatal classes are offered in small group sessions. Prices ranges from $80 per virtual workshop to $240 for the complete in-person series.
To register, please visit Eventbrite for available sessions and times.
We also offer private one-on-one virtual sessions that can be booked around your schedule and tailored to your learning needs. Private workshops are $180. To book a private class email prenatalclasses@providencehealth.bc.ca
Last reviewed: March 5, 2025