Stop been so cheap!

[trumpetbum]

I would have loved to have several scans - but it is not necessary. I am sure that if there was any bleeding/indication of any problems then I would have been scanned.

I am in Glasgow and we only get the 1 scan around 12 weeks.

About 99% (?) pregnancies go without any problems so why do we need extra scans?

Just enjoy being pregnant and if there is something to worry about then see your doctor/go to A&E etc

I'm also in Glasgow and NHS GG&C have gone back to 2 scans which is nice Although I had a cheeky third as the receptionist accidentally made my anomoly scan appt for 16 weeks and when I turned up the radiographer gave me a wee quickie as it was too early for her to do it. Technically I suppose I've had 4 scans as they did two at my 12 weeker, as the consultant recommended I go back in for a thorough nuchal afterwards due to complications in a previous pregnancy.

 

[Jenna700]

hello girls....jut wanted to add my input....if there was any extra money magically conjured up, then personally, i would like to think that NHS nurses would get paid more...this is because i am led to believe that they are paid absoloutly peanuts for the hours they work...and of course more money to be spent on ill patients....now i might be opening a whole different can of worms here... but this is the first thought that came into my head when i read the original post....
I might be completly wrong xxxxxx

 

[Nathyrra]

Having been used to the NHS for years, and now used to the German system which is essentually the same amount of money taken out of your bank account every month, with an extra 10Euro taken out every quarter for ongoing conditions. I'm so grateful for the German system, which is a health insurance but it's essentual rather than a choice. I wouldn't even be pregnant now without it. The NHS is a blessing, but at the same time it does have flaws that it could learn from other European countries to improve working conditions/wait times/drugs available. x

 

[aurora]

In Canada you only are supposed to get ONE scan at 18-20 weeks, unless they are concerned about dates or something! I'm actually happy with that because no one knows how ultrasounds effect the baby other then heating up its cells!

We're allowed 3 unless there are problems, I've heard out East its stingier!

I had 2 and am happy with that, I prefer to not have anything unneccesary, women had babies for an awfully long time without ultrasounds

 

[linsayp]

I think considering people in the UK get free healthcare it's not unreasonable to expect the minimum number if scans for a healthy pregnancy. If your m/w or Dr has concerns then yeah, you'll have more.

I get more over here (probably 4 over all) but I pay a small cost for each as they are subsadised, not free. And even here most normal pregnancies only get 2 may be 3 as that's all that really needed in most cases. M/w are damn good at working out size etc

I'm not saying the NHS is perfect, cos it's very definitley not, but is a good enough system, look what you DO get for free, I think it's great they provide free appts, scans, free dental care etc.

i am a huge fan of the nhs - i have a great deal of respect for our healthcare system and am grateful to live in a country which provides the level of care which we receive. however, i don't agree when anyone says we receive this for "free" - it's never been free.

OP - would you agree to an increase in tax to fund these additional scans?!

no i wouldnt... i believe we pay enough tax as it is and in my personal experience and opinion i dont think the health care we recieve is worth what we pay! ...

couldn't have said it better myself. The healthcare I received during my pregnancy was diabolical, I won't even mention the awful care I had before I was pregnant. I would GLADLY pay for my healthcare if I thought it would be a little better, unfortunately private healthcare isn't much better according to many people I know. I've also got to say that other than being pregnant & a child, I've NEVER had free dental care, not sure where you got that from.

See post #42

what's your point?? I don't give a sh*t about that, I would still rather pay if it meant I would get better care.

 

[iow_bird]

I'm glad to see so many people sticking up for the NHS! I worked as a radiographer for the NHS in the UK for years, then came out to NZ and worked in the private sector. It's utterly shocking how many medically unecessary procedures are done just because people think they need them and are happy to pay for them.

Why do so many people think they know better than people who have trained for years and years to to a job. Midwives and obstetricians don't go into their chosen careers because they don't care, there are a lot of excellent midwives and Dr's out there, who will do everything they can to ensure that their patients get the best care. If you have a concern and feel you may need an extra scan, then discuss it with your midwife, and if she says she doesn't think you need it then ask her why!

2-3cm out on fundal height measurements is within the normal range.

I think the OP has a very strong negative opinion of the NHS. Unless she has trained as a midwife then I'm unsure of why she feels she needs all the extra scans? If you need one you get it, if not and you feel that strongly, then pay for it!! Also, I'm pretty sure you're entitled to a second opinion if you don't agree with their opinion.

Personally, I'd rather the NHS put this magical extra funding they have at the bottom of their bottomless pockets into neonatal care and looking after people who need it than into unneccessary scans.
(PS. Most midwives will take our own intuition as a good indication that something may be wrong so if they aren't acting on something then I'm sure they're doing it in your and babies best intrests)!

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

The majority of nurses, doctors etc strive to give you better care. You have had bad experiances and I am sorry for that. The. Nhs as a whole is an asset to this country and I am proud to say I am training in nursing and will be a nhs nurse. But if you feel that strongly and wouldn't mind paying more like you said there is the private sector. I hope you soon receive the care you should have
You should also complain about any bad care as nothing can be resovled or changed if no one tells someone
Xx

 

[milkmachine]

ive not read the entire thread but if you want more scans you should pay for them yourself and not act so spoilt we are very lucky really!

 

[LPF]

I work for the NHS in a big busy hospital and it always cheeses me off when people think the services provided are some sort of bottomless pit where you should get whatever you want.

The NHS was developed back in 1948 for a completly different purpose to what it is now - the level of medical care that can be provided now is so expensive that was never around back then and it just keeps growing exponentially. That's why NICE have to put a stop to some drugs that might help a bit - but not enough to be economically viable in the long term weighed up against other options that money could be used for. It's very sad, but has to be done - there isn't a limitless pot of money for people to have whatever they want.

It can't go on forever in my opinion - if it does we will be on the verge of getting the private sector involved and before we know it all you would get is a very basic package of care (much less than now) and you would have to pay for anything above and beyond that. Then people would be struggling to access services without medical insurance etc.

At the moment the NHS treats everyone equally - we never discriminate by someones background or lifestyle options - you help them see how they are hurting themselves and usually if they don't want help - they don't access the services anyway.

So no - I don't agree with the OP - if you don't need extra scans you shouldn't get them.

 

[shambaby]

i think everyone should get regular x-rays just to check they have no broken bones that might have been missed. maybe monthly mri scans just to check everything's ok?

i'm sorry, i haven't read the whole thread, but the nhs is not 'being cheap'. they are providing us with what is actually a very good standard of care, provided by under-paid, under-valued, but dedicated staff who, on the whole, are in their chosen professions to help people. the majority of them could get better pay and conditions in private healthcare, but choose not to because they believe in the nhs. if there was any extra money in the pot, there are much more important things it could be spent on than unnecessary scans. in a lot of the 'other countries' where women 'get' more scans it is only because their systems encourage doctors to perform unnecessary scans in order to get more money! there are guidelines which sonographers have to follow which state they should keep ultrasound exposure to the minimum necessary to complete a test, the reason for this is that the effects on a baby of excessive exposure to ultrasound are not known. personally i would not waste nhs money on scans neither i nor my baby need.

we need to be grateful for the nhs while we still have it, i doubt it will be around forever.

 

[Penfelyn]

I've not read the whole thread but I agree with the recent posts. The NHS does an amazing job to deliver healthcare free at point of access. I was an NHS radiographer and am now training to become a Doctor. I am proud to be training to be an NHS doctor and have no aspirations to become involved in private work.
As for scans... if they're not medically necessary then why bother? Two scans is adequate. If there are problems with your pregnancy, you get more. Simples.
If you want them purely for non-medical reasons then pay for private ones. I'd much rather this magical money was spent on increasing staffing levels and increased wages for healthcare professionals and doctors (yes, junior Doctors earn peanuts - its a common misconception that upon qualification, Doctors are high earners) or funding equipment in ITU or neonatal units and theatres.

I think if people knew the actual cost of medical care they'd soon realise how awesome the NHS is and stop complaining about the little things. For example, any idea how much antenatal care costs? The price of carrying out a c-section? Even a 20 minute anomaly scan privately would set you back nearly £100!

 

[teal]

Where I am - if everything is fine then we have a scan at 12 and 20 weeks. I personally feel we're lucky to have the two scans. I did have additional scans due to some issues that came up while I was pregnant. The care I received from NHS midwives, nurses and doctors while I was pregnant was fantastic and I could never thank them enough.

Also - not sure if it's just me - but I got really stressed before scans (incase something was wrong) so not sure I could have mentally coped with scans every 4 weeks!

 

[Phinners]

I agree with Forgodssake. We get all our healthcare for free (except teeth) we should be thankful we do get it for nowt. So many Brits would be fvcked if they had to pay for their healthcare - they certainly wouldnt be clogging up A&E pissed up on a Friday night if they had to pay for it or taking little Johnny to the A&E because he sneezed in the wrong semitone.

We should be thankful for the staff that work their guts out for shite pay too (I know, I've been an NHS staff member so I know how shite it can be).

So whilst having lots of scans would be great fun, it isnt medically necessary, unless there is a need then we wont get them. I've had 2 NHS scans - I wanted more, so we went private and paid for them.

Plus you have to remember that NHS Obs depts are outragously busy with thousands of mums to look after, they cannot pander to all of us, the service would collapes under the strain in a week.

 

[trumpetbum]

(yes, junior Doctors earn peanuts - its a common misconception that upon qualification, Doctors are high earners)

and in my experience the JHOs are the ones asking, long after their shift has ended 'is there anything I can do before I go??' To which we usually tell them to feck off home and get a sleep I've seen JHOs in tears from the sheer workload and random often undeserved abuse they get because people assume they're docs and rolling in it. Not in comparison to their hours and the workload. No wonder as they move up through the ranks they usually get more strict about getting out on time (although I've seen many seniors working far more hours than they get paid to. )

 

[trumpetbum]

Having been used to the NHS for years, and now used to the German system which is essentually the same amount of money taken out of your bank account every month, with an extra 10Euro taken out every quarter for ongoing conditions. I'm so grateful for the German system, which is a health insurance but it's essentual rather than a choice. I wouldn't even be pregnant now without it. The NHS is a blessing, but at the same time it does have flaws that it could learn from other European countries to improve working conditions/wait times/drugs available. x

Ita, there are a lot of things we can learn from other countries and hope that we do, there are other universal health care systems that we could learn from, although the UK NHS has a lot of unique challenges like the nature of provision in the highlands and Islands for example.

 

[Blah11]

where do you suggest all this money comes from? Do you think its fair for everyone to get taxed an extra 5% just because you WANT an extra scan or 2? Theres no need to have a million ultrasounds in a healthy pregnancy. Fundal height is just an estimate, just like growth scans are just an estimate. One is way more expensive than the other, both do pretty much the same job and both can be totally inaccurate.

I don't think you have a point at all, sorry.


ETA - also, we still don't know the effects of ultrasounds on the baby And you're lucky you got 2 scans.. when i was pregnant NHS lothian offered 1 scan at 12 weeks and that was it. I paid for 2 more privately.

 

[Blah11]

Also, I'm fed up of people moaning and bitching about the NHS. People seriously have no idea how lucky we are to have essentially free healthcare for EVERYONE no matter if you're homeless on the street or living in a £5mil mansion.

 

[Wriggley]

At the end of the day - we have 2 scans if everything is ok - if they feel we need more scans we get them. Its not as if they turn round and say "we need to check your baby but you already had your 2 scans so sorry nothing we can do"

 

[Blah11]

I've not read the whole thread but I agree with the recent posts. The NHS does an amazing job to deliver healthcare free at point of access. I was an NHS radiographer and am now training to become a Doctor. I am proud to be training to be an NHS doctor and have no aspirations to become involved in private work.
As for scans... if they're not medically necessary then why bother? Two scans is adequate. If there are problems with your pregnancy, you get more. Simples.
If you want them purely for non-medical reasons then pay for private ones. I'd much rather this magical money was spent on increasing staffing levels and increased wages for healthcare professionals and doctors (yes, junior Doctors earn peanuts - its a common misconception that upon qualification, Doctors are high earners) or funding equipment in ITU or neonatal units and theatres.

I think if people knew the actual cost of medical care they'd soon realise how awesome the NHS is and stop complaining about the little things. For example, any idea how much antenatal care costs? The price of carrying out a c-section? Even a 20 minute anomaly scan privately would set you back nearly £100!

Indeed! I dont think people have a clue how much things cost. Even simple bits like venflons and syringes are really expensive for a ward when they have a really limited budget. Our ward budget is £315 a week for supplies not including drugs or staffing and its always a huge struggle (im the one who does the ordering ). £315 doesnt stretch far for 24 patients when we spend near enough £100 of that on gloves, alcorub and aprons

 

[buttonnose82]

to give pregnant women more scans would mean taking money away from another area, just so 1 person can have a scan every 4 weeks could mean that another person will have to go without life saving treatment which doesn't sit right with me at all!

we are lucky to receive the care we do, I can't fault the NHS with my maternity care, we had a extra scan after being told our baby might die before birth, I tell you now, I would trade that extra scan for anything, That 24 hours was the WORST of our lives!

Nothing stopping people putting their hands in their pockets and paying for private scans if you are so concerned, current screening clearly works otherwise it would have been changed by now