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Childbirth

Ealing mum needs struggling to choose hospital. Please share your experiences

12 replies

Chispa · 14/10/2015 16:12

Hi, desperate at 11 weeks to choose hoital for second baby. I have ruled out QCCH due to traumatic previoys experience. Anyone can share experiences of West Midd, St Marys, UClH, Barnes, Kingston? Urgent help required! Thanks for reading

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Tinymrscollings · 16/10/2015 04:35

I had DC1 at West Mid, which was great. We moved a couple of miles in the interim and I was all set to have DC2 at Ealing til they shut the maternity unit in June. Going back to West Mid for DC2 (hopefully any day now!) Queen Charlotte's not for me due to relatively fast labour with DC1 - I'd rather take my chances with the Rugby World Cup in Twickenham than the traffic on the A40.

I was very happy with the care we received there and sure I will be with DC2.

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Lunastarfish · 16/10/2015 16:35

I gave birth at Kingston recently. the only negative things I can say is that I think I was anaemic after giving birth and despite repeatedly complaining of feeling faint no blood tests were done. But I assume they know better than me! There was also an admin issue which annoyed me but rather minor.

I had a very long labour and went from MLU to labour ward. Everyone I dealt with were lovely, baby heart beat and my blood pressure was checked every 15 mins. Midwife were available to help with breastfeeding. I was also able to have a private room.

Kingston is very busy and if you are seeking a water birth it might not be possible.

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Chispa · 18/10/2015 23:32

Hi Tiniymrscollings and Lunastarfish, thanks very much for your feedback and for understanding my message in spite of the typos.

Im being seing at the frequent miscarriage clinic in St Marys due to previous miscarriages. They would offer me a consultant-led care. For me it's easy to get to as I live 2m from train station and get in 20m door to door. I have heard mixed reviews about the labour ward and really good about the Birth Centre. I had the chance to visit both receptions and talk to their staff and midwifes and must say they all were lovely.

I know a nurse at UCLH and he has highly recommended their services although he does not work at maternity. Reviews for UCHL are better than for St Marys, but I suppose it is all the luck of the day. However, UClH is further for me. My first labour was really slow, so it is doable if second baby behaves the same.

I must say these are the 2 hospitals, I feel more inclined to. Ill do some more research on WMidd. Kingston may be a no go for me if water birth availability is tricky as it is also not too handy distance wise.

Best of luck to Tinymrscollings with DC2 and hope that Lunastarfish you are recovering well and your little one is feeding ans sleeping like an angel.

Anyone out there with feedback on St Marys or UCLH, please?

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icclemunchy · 18/10/2015 23:46

I'm in Greenford and had both mine at St Mary's, I was also under the rescuers to miscarriage team and the consultant led due to diabetes.

Clinics are mad as they simply have far more patients than slots but getting early appointments help, labour ward is individual rooms but they're not ensuite and post natal is blinking awful.

However the midwifes are amazing, I can't fault the drs and having had two lightly traumatic c sections the care was fabulous. I also used their maternity triage bit quite a lot and again although they're very busy they do heir best. DD2 was delivered within 4 hours of me reporting reduced movement.

I will also say (although hopefully you wouldn't need it) the NICU at St Mary's cannot be faulted, DD2 spent nearly 3 weeks there in the end and not only was her care faultless the way we were included and treated as parents made a hard time much easier. They even have two bedrooms so you can room in if they're free.

All in all I think it depends which part matters more to you. We were willing to suck up the long clinic times and crowded post natal to get the care we got but you might prefer to look at somewhere with more private rooms or something like that

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icclemunchy · 18/10/2015 23:47

I should add I hurd good things about the birth centre although never visited as diabeties rules that out for me.

Oh and congratulations

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ACatCalledFang · 19/10/2015 09:14

One of my NCT friends gave birth at UCH a few weeks ago, and raved about it. She had a water birth and was very happy with the care she received (and was home later that day).

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Chispa · 22/10/2015 17:52

Icckemunchy, congratulations on both babies and particularly on the latest addition to the family. Im glad things work out well for you.

I'm hoping that if the pregnancy progresses well and hopefully the risk of miscarriage reduces, Ill be suitable for birth centre. I have never heard of anyone having a bad experience in a birth centre to be honest.

But with my first one should have been induced due to lack of contractions. (I wasnt, one of the many negligences Queen Charlottes committed on my first birth). So need to make a decision in case I end up in a Labour Ward.

Will you have sometime to drop a few lines and explain a bit more about postnatal hospital experience? How many women per room? What about nurses, midwives and health assistants in postnatal. They were inhuman n Queen Charlotte and I stayed 4 nights. Time to meet a few...

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Chispa · 22/10/2015 17:55

ACatcalledFang (love the alias!). Thanks for your feedback. Do you know if your friend knows of anyone giving birth in the Labour Ward and if the would recommend? No worries if you cannot find out.

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Chispa · 22/10/2015 17:57

Many thanks everyone so far for all yoyr feedback. I know you are all busy mums and time is precious. ACattleCalledFang, congratulations on your little one too. I hope you are both doing well.

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icclemunchy · 23/10/2015 15:13

Bays are between 4/6 on the side I was on ( the entrance is in the middle of a long corridor and both times I stayed to the right but presuming it's the same both ends!!) most night shifts seem to be 2 midwives and one student to a lot of women (30 maybe?) and maybe 3midwives a student and a couple of HCAs during the day.

I found them all lovely, professional and caring (especially when baby was in NICU) but they don't have a lot of time. The food is blinking awful but I'm guessing the same contractor does all of imperial. Advantage to st Mary's is there's plenty of places for OH to grab you some food outside. Partners can also stay now I believe.

There was when I was in only one shower on my end of he corridor but never had any real problems getting in there and this may of changed (I'm sure there were two when I had my first)

Anything else you want to know feel free to drop me a pm

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ACatCalledFang · 23/10/2015 19:13

Chispa, you're welcome - and thanks! I'm not sure whether my friend knows anyone else who used the labour ward at UCLH but I'll ask - we're out of area so possibly not.

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Chispa · 24/11/2015 23:35

Hi all, thanks for all the advice and good wishes. Apologies for the silence but I have been very unwell with nausea, constant indigestion and terrble migraines. Baby is fine though.

I still havent made my mind. I have been accepted by both hospitals and doubling appoinments. I know it is a bit naughty. I hoped I would have made a decision by now. But circumstances have made it difficult.

St Marys midwifes have been so far nicer and more caring. In my first appoinment, they were more rigourous in gathering information about my medical history, miscarriages, previous traumatical birth, in spite oh having already lots of background info from the Frequent Miscarriage Clinic.

UCLH much more sloppy. Just following procedure, not very interested in how unwell I felt, my previous history, miscarriages or traumatic birth. uCLH as per St M. Categorised me at high risk and also oferred me a consultant led ante-natal care. In St M I had my first doctors appointment in w14 ( the same consultants followed me at the FMC until w12).

To my shock, in spite of being high risk my very first UCLH obstetritian appointment is in w20!!! I went back to MW and asked her how coukd it be that she referred me to a consultant for my high risk of miscarriage and nobody would see me until Xmas. She was rude and told me she couldnt make up appoinments for me if they didnt exist and that thats what you get when you go to a central london busy hospital. That and the distance from Ealing made me decide to drop UCLH and stick to old St M.

But just when I was to tell them went for my w16 MW appoinment. I have very bad back problems as have never recovered from DD1 and during the first pregnancy I had really bad SPD. And then UCLH can give me acupuncture and Physio. They also have better scanning as they are trained by FMF, which did in both pregnancies my harmony test. I am still waiting to see if St M will offer me physio.

I feel terribly guilty to take 2 places, but I am struggling to cope with this pregnancy and each hospital is offering me different things. In St M the special consultant care and more caring MW. UClH the physio, acu and better scanning. So I will hold on both until at least W20. I hope you dont judge me for it. But I had a terrible first pregnancy and labour experience I did not recover well and with the current risks in the second one and how badly I am coping I am afraid I decided to do what is best for this baby and me first.

Happy to answer any questions on my antenatal care in both hospitals in I can help. Take care