Disappointing midwife appointment

[Shiv]

I moved recently and today was my first midwife appt in my new town. Where I was before they were very pro home birth, and birth centre and in fact would actively discourage you from going for a hospital birth unless you needed to. Soooooooooooo I knid of expected the same here..............

Well the midwife said she was going to talk me through where i could have the baby. She statred with a local birth centre, but added instantly that it was likely i would be transferred by ambulance to hospital (by the way I had an easy labour with no.1 and this pregnancy is going fine with no problems) and her exact words "nobody wants that!". Then she said your best option is the hospital. No mention of home birth, so I mentioned it and she said "well it is an option, butif i am honest with you, the local midwives are very busy and usually the on call ones are called into the hospital and have to cancel any home births". SO I contested it and said, can they do that, I was under the impression that if i was at home in labour and call in then they HAVE to send a midwife out to me. To which she said, if there is no midiwfe then you'll have to make do with a paramedic!

I was shocked by her attitude to be honest, and is she right about them being able to only send a paramedic?

It makes me want to to go back to where I used i live (100 miles away) to give birth, because i know i will be cared for there and am comfortable with my options.

sorry for the lengthy, thanks if you have managed to read it all and i would appreciate any advice you might have

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

Big thumbs down to that MW. I wonder if my MW is her long lost twin sister or something I mentioned a HB and she just launched into a hard sell of the hospital MLU - if I'd wanted to birth there, I'd have said so!

Technically, if there are not any MWs available then I think it is a paramedic. But tbh I would be sceptical about how often this is genuinely the case.

I'd ask to be seen by someone else next time. someone who can be a bit less negative!

 

[sarah1980]

You ladies midwifes have a long lost triplet in my midwife lol! She keeps trying to talk me out of my birth centre birth and even went as far last week to tell me she doesnt feel confident delivering my baby at the birth centre as I am so fat she cant feel the baby's position properly and may not be able to tell if it is breech!!! The birth centre do have an upper BMI limit but I am 5 under that!!!

Sorry hun I have no advice, just wanted to say grrrrrrr lol!!!!

Sarah xxx

 

[Shiv]

Sarah - I would be tempted to say to your midwife that if she doesn't feel confident deliverin gyour baby then you would like a new midwife! Silly woman!

Seriously, where do these midwives come from?!?!?!??!

 

[Thegirl]

Sorry you had a rubbish midwife, mine was the first to suggest a home birth. In fact, when I had my home visit being booked in she wouldn't send one of the other midwives as she wasn't very pro home birth and she didn't want any negativity close to the birth.
If there are no midwives then I imagine that you would have to do with a paramedic (make do-they are trained). However, my midwife assured me that there were no cases since she'd been working in the last 27 years in my area where there were no midwives available. Might be different where you are, but I would be sceptical.

 

[sarah1980]

Sarah - I would be tempted to say to your midwife that if she doesn't feel confident deliverin gyour baby then you would like a new midwife! Silly woman!

Seriously, where do these midwives come from?!?!?!??!

I'm tempted to! I have decided that if she is on duty when I go into labour then I will transfer to the hospital. I have no confidence in her at all and I think it would seriously hinder my delivery!

 

[amjon]

The center I will probably go to does offer home birth. I don't really want that option, but they don't discourage it. I will probably go to the center. She did say they had some legal reasons they would have to send you to the hospital or transfer. (Labor more than 2 weeks early or late, breech baby, preeclampsia, or other complications)

 

[xxembobxx]

No mention of home birth, so I mentioned it and she said "well it is an option, butif i am honest with you, the local midwives are very busy and usually the on call ones are called into the hospital and have to cancel any home births". SO I contested it and said, can they do that, I was under the impression that if i was at home in labour and call in then they HAVE to send a midwife out to me. To which she said, if there is no midiwfe then you'll have to make do with a paramedic!

I've never opted for a home birth before but did have one baby at home due to the speed of it! Paramedics turned up after baby was born and MW was after that. The cord was around babys neck and DH sorted it out.
I'm not saying it was ideal but we managed fine without any help at all.

I would love to know why some MW's are so anti-homebirthig I see in the news today it states more than 1000 were turned away from hospitals - I'm betting far fewer homebirths were turned away!
https://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/tv/...inquiry-revealed-by-panorama-115875-23295070/

 

[RaspberryK]

My first midwife was like this, I have since found my area have an actual home birth team so it's worth researching on your own.

x

 

[Samantha675]

I've never opted for a home birth before but did have one baby at home due to the speed of it! Paramedics turned up after baby was born and MW was after that. The cord was around babys neck and DH sorted it out.
I'm not saying it was ideal but we managed fine without any help at all.

I would love to know why some MW's are so anti-homebirthig I see in the news today it states more than 1000 were turned away from hospitals - I'm betting far fewer homebirths were turned away!
https://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/tv/...inquiry-revealed-by-panorama-115875-23295070/

The last bit is amazing. Let's not focus on the women who died due to negligence. Let's focus on the ones who didn't. OMG!