help with hospital/nhs!

[stellargaze]

Hi Ladies,

So I know it's really early to be worrying about this-- but my closest hospital's maternity ward is under review. Apparently they've turned away women and one gave birth in the toilets! A couple of years ago they were flagged by health and safety!

We can't afford a private birth and even if we could, the private hospitals are 45-60 mins away!

Anyone have any advice? What sort of options are there? I'm not comfortable with a home-birth as I have a lot of health problems....

I think I need to decide soon as it affects the doctors and midwifes I see during the pregnancy. What options are there?

 

[punk_pig]

If it is under review then. Everyone will be on their toes, no-one will want to risk doing anything wrong (like turn people away). I'd say if it is your only option you're likely to be there at the best possible time!

 

[joanna1980]

What about a birthing centre ? Ask ur midwife about it ,

 

[kat2504]

How far away is your second closest hospital? You should be able to choose where you give birth within the NHS hospitals even if you have to drive a bit further. There is a site where you can research places near to you to give birth but I can't remember it off my head. If it is 45 minutes away that is not that bad, and in an emergency you could always go to the other hospital if things happened fast. If it's your first time you will probably have plenty of time to get to hospital.
Perhaps visiting your local hospital and finding out what they are doing to improve things might put your mind at rest. Perhaps do a bit of internet research on hospitals in your region and seeing how they compare.
My local hospital doesn't score that great but when I delved into it that was because they hadn't submitted all their data to the authority in a timely manner. When I looked at the statistics, the stuff missing out was unimportant stuff and they scored the same as the others on the stuff that matters to me.

 

[Lisa2701]

When I booked up to see the midwife I was given an option between 2 hospitals, one 20 minutes away one 45 minutes away. I'd ask where your second choice hospital is and see what its like.

 

[Star7890]

Where abouts do you live? If they are under review or have been then that means they will be trying harder to improve their services and they will be being watched and will have been punished/spoken to already so that should buck their ideas up... I wouldnt worry too much, I can guarantee theres just as many if not marginally more good stories from people who have given birth there than bad xx

 

[stellargaze]

Thanks, I'm in west Hertfordshire, but just barely. I googled about the birthing centres last night-- but couldn't find any in the vicinity that have medical equipment on hand. I asked my gp about my options, but was only given two: the closest was just in the newspaper yesterday with really frightening stories-- it's not something like statistics, but those horror stories of women giving birth in the loo and others being turned away because they are too busy, the second I just found out might close their maternity ward as it's not being used enough!

I don't know how to find out my options really-- we only recently moved to the area. I think there are other hospitals within 45 minutes, but they don't have midwives that work in my area as far as I know. Will the NHS cover it if you go to a different area for the birth?

Can I ask, do you see your midwife at your regular gp? Or do you have to travel to see her? I am totally clueless on how all of this works. I haven't had a blood test or anything yet.

The other thing I'm concerned about is that even if we booked a private room for after the birth at the hospital, they don't let visitors (including husband/father/partners) stay after 9pm once the birth over...

do you always have a midwife from the hospital where you give birth?

I realise these are probably some really basic questions, but no one has explained anything to us!

 

[stellargaze]

Actually, the second option I was given, doesn't even have a maternity ward listed on their website... I think the doctor I spoke to was fairly new at the practice.

 

[Lisa2701]

I would speak to your MW honey, she will know best what is going on in your area! Best of luck honey! Pregnancy and labour are stressful enough without worries like this. Hope you find some where you are happy with x

 

[pink80]

Hi hun - where in West Herts - I'm in hertford. What Hopsital are you talking about QE2??

 

[stellargaze]

My two closest: 1- Watford. There was an article I saw yesterday so it really worried me! The other choice I was given is Amersham-- but as far as I can tell they don't even have a maternity ward anymore... I'm on the border with buckinghamshire and not far from middlesex either.

I haven't met my mw yet-- all i know is that she is an employee at watford, so i'm worried about getting an unbiased perspective from her.

 

[pink80]

Have you looked on the NHS choices website, they can tell you which hospitals have a maternity unit. There seemed to be a few that came up in your area

Definitely talk to your midwife Hun

 

[kat2504]

Either your midwife will see you at home or you will be seen in a GP surgery or some similar centre. They are usually not the same midwives that work in the hospital. They are community midwives usually so they won't be delivering your baby unless you opt for homebirth.

Not allowing men to stay overnight on the ward is common in many hospitals to provide privacy and dignity to the other women on the ward. Although you want your partner to stay, he is a stranger to the other women there who will be going about in nightwear trying to get to a toilet without bleeding all over the floor. It's a vulnerable time and I think it's fair enough not to have to share the facilities with men you don't know.

Also even if you book a private room they can kick you out of it at the last minute if someone who needs it more comes along (isolation for infectious diseases/stillbirth/etc)

Your midwife will be able to explain all your options to you and hopefully calm some of your fears. I'll see if I can google some sites for you to look at.

 

[kat2504]

This might help in addition to the nhs choices site.

 

[kat2504]

Sorry forgot the link!
https://www.birthchoiceuk.com/Frame.htm

 

[stellargaze]

Thanks to everyone-- I will try to bring it up with the midwife. I think when I'm a big further along, I may chat with some of the local mums and see if they have any advice.

And thanks kat-- that answers a lot of my questions-- i don't think my gp really gave me a clear impression of what the midwife does. My husband is british, but I grew up overseas and only know one person who didn't have a doctor led birth.

A website with options would be very welcome.

Yes, I realise that about the public ward and the other women-- I was thinking about the option of a private room for the night, which is about what we can do on our budget. I think I'm a bit overly concerned because I have such a long history of health problems and it took us 4 years for our bfp! What I've read so far, is that the private rooms are in a different area to the ward and women can opt to go there after the birth and main medical care is over, or to have a full private birth up there. We would do the former-- room only.

I suppose I have a long time to decide if we aren't bound to the hospital based on which midwife we have... I was under the impression that you are with the same midwife for the whole long process... and that women generally went to the wards that the midwifes are associated with.

 

[stellargaze]

Oh! There is an option if you hire the room-only for a partner to stay the night! So much conflicting information... I will definitely ask the mw about it!

And thanks for the website! Looking at it now.

 

[NickyKB]

Hi I'm in Ruislip and had similar worries as didn't know anything about my local hospital for birth and next nearest is Northwick Park which had problems a few years ago. When I saw my GP there was a whole list of places I could choose from although some of them were not actual places for birth they were other GP surgeries that came up on the online system realistically for distance I knew I could choose between Hillingdon, Northwick and Watford (which when I had researched had quite good reviews and I thought had birth centre in hospital as well as normal labour ward). I had been on the birth choices website someone else recommended but my GP also said there had been an updated survey by the care quality commision of maternity services you can look up any hospital and see how they did on this compared to other units as well. their website is:
Sorry it won't let me put this in as I've not posted enough google care quality commission and then go to their care directory tab
type the name of the hospital your interested in and then pick maternity survey on the next page to see the results its a bit long winded to do but quite helpful. ALthough ultimately my main aim is for me and baby to arrive and be healthy so some of the areas I was less bothered in - but personal choice. Doesn't matter where you book you can still see the MW in your GP surgery as long as they have one and after birth if your not at the "usual" hospital for the area they just let your community midwife team know you've had baby and they should come and see you at home as normal. If you have medical problems and may be under hospital Dr team as well as midwife you will have to travel to where you've booked for any hospital ANC appts as well as birth and also if any problems during pregnancy and they want you to go in to be checked so worth not picking somewhere absolutely miles away. Having said all of that I think people before who've put about if the service is under review they'll prob be on their toes are prob right about this. In the end after all the research I booked at Hillingdon as looked OK on reviews and my GP said she'd happily give birth there which I thought was quite a recommendation. Just had my booking appt this week there and it seemed nice but obviously can't tell much about about labour care from this!

FYI I don't think Amersham has maternity services either, Wycombe is now a birth centre only for traditional labour ward its now at at Stoke Mandeville I think...

Sorry to have gone on so long hope its useful!

 

[stellargaze]

Thanks, That's very helpful. We were wondering about Hillingdon actually-- I don't think it's that far from us.

I'm just a bit surprised that the gp offered me a hospital that doesn't even have a maternity ward anymore! I heard she is new to the practice, so perhaps she hasn't had to deal with the maternity side of things out here yet. I feel a lot more at ease now after going thorugh the different options and knowing that I can take time to make choices.

I am definitely going to look through that website at the reviews, as the article I read was in an online version of the newspaper, and after looking at it again today it seems that the date changes to match today's date. Hopefully it's old! We are equally close to Hillingdon actually! I am surprised they didn't offer that as a choice to us. If the hospital is not far off the A40, it might even be closer to get to.

 

[punk_pig]

The midwife who sees you through pregnancy isn't usually associated with any hospital because she'll be a community midwife.