Background fetal blood sample (FBS) is done to obtain a scalp sample of capillary blood from the fetus in order to assess fetal acidosis, in the presence of a suspicious or pathological CTG. Decision-results interval during performing FBS is very crucial for the fetal outcome when analysing the poor outcomes retrospectively.

Aim This audit aim was to identify the time from decision to perform a fetal scalp blood sample (FBS) to the test's result being available then correlate that to fetal outcomes.

Methods A total of 161 successful attempts of FBS were done on delivery suite. Data regarding decision, indication, details of procedure, operator grade and interval to the results was collected either retrospectively from the records or prospectively.

FBS results were classified as normal, borderline and abnormal and it was correlated to the decision – results interval.

Results 52% of the cases the interval was more than 25 min with the extreme being 58 min while only 14% had the procedure in 15 min or less.

Conclusion FBS is a secondary assessment tool for fetal acidosis that needs to be done within a time frame that allows a window for repeating the test or immediate delivery if indicated to improve fetal outcomes. As there is a very limited literature and no evidence based accepted standards, auditing our own practice and correlating it to the outcome remains crucial.

Keywords Intrapartum monitoring, fetal blood sample, fetal acidosis, fetal hypoxia.