Sorry for another post! Health visitor question for UK ladies

[babyhopes2010]

i think depends on the area- they dont here

 

[Butterball Ma]

Lol...I've seen many posts about health visitors throughout my years on this site. It must be a really different mindset in the UK. Can't imagine what someone here in West Virginia would do if a government employee tried to come in a house (with no cause) and asked what religion you were or said they had to see where baby would sleep. What do they do if you cosleep and they aren't happy with that? I understand it is a social program to help, but way too invasive in my opinion.

Americans have a very different mindset to Brits generally. I'm American but live permanently in the UK now, so I'm used to both. We tend to do lots of things in the home that in America you have to go to an office for. A health visitor isn't like social services or anything. They're pediatric nurses. So kinda like how you would take your baby to the pediatrician in the first weeks after birth, we just do it at home with a nurse instead. You don't take your baby to the doctor until 6 weeks (and then it's just to get your shots as they can't do those at home). Otherwise, the nurse comes to you. They do ask about where baby is sleeping and how you are coping and such and do weight and length measurements, but that's what your ped would (or should) do too, just in an office instead of a home visit. It's great! I couldn't imagine having a baby in the U.S. now and having had to go out to doctor's visits in the first few weeks. It was so nice to stay at home and have someone come to us.

Thanks for explaining. As an American, that is a strange concept. Let me ask this...are these visits mandatory? Could I opt out of them in favor of office visits? I am very protective of my personal spaces, I even hate when the cable guy has to come, lol. I suppose it's just a cultural thing, but uh no, you cannot ask me my religion or to see the baby's room. Interesting.