One to One Midwives

[Jenjen85]

Iv seen that In my area I can self refer to the one to one midwives but I'm not sure as I don't know much about them. Anyone used the one to one midwives. I'm in Warrington so if anyone has in my area any advice/info would be great

[BiscuitBeast]

Hi, I don't live in your area but have some experience of 1 2 1 midwifery care. Firstly, they are centred around home births so if this is not something you are interested in then I would stay with your current antenatal provider. In my area staffing levels were an issue so from 11 to 34 weeks I met with 4 different midwives. I've sinced transferred to my local midwife led birthing unit as this is what I feel most comfortable with. The 1 2 1 service was great in terms of midwife coming to my home or place of work for check ups and scans were done at private clinics where images were free of charge and plentiful!

[LumpySpaceCow]

Hi,
I had one to one in my last pregnancy (can't get it this pregnancy due to location but would in a heart beat).
They differ from usual nhs community midwives in that they are case loading midwives I.e. You see the same 1/2 (you will have a 2nd midwife in case other is sick etc) all the way through pregnancy and up to 6 weeks postnatally. They see you at home. You are still entitled to access everything that you would if in usual NHS care. You have their mobile number if you need anything at all and can ring/text them whenever.
I disagree with pp saying that you shouldn't use them if you don't want a home birth. Their whole philosophy surrounds empowering women, informed choice and individualised care - they are there to support wherever you want to birth. If you choose home birth then yes, you will know the midwife who will be there when your baby is born, if you choose to give birth in hospital, they can actually come to your house when your in early labour to support/assess you before you go into hospital.
I had an elective section. I saw the same midwife at every appointment who knew me, my history, what issues I was facing personally etc. (This pregnancy I have seen 6 different midwives who all give different information). I saw the one to one midwife regularly (this pregnancy, I have gone up to 6 weeks between appointments; I would see my one to one every couple of weeks after 24 weeks). After my section, my one to one midwife visited me in hospital and supported with breastfeeding (I had some difficulties even though I had bf my first) and then visited me every day for about 5 days then at regular intervals after that (nhs usually discharge you at 10-14 days and often expect you to go to a clinic to see them and again, you are likely to see a different MW each time).
For me, the service was out of this world- it was like and independent midwifery service for free. I have really noticed the difference with this pregnancy and feel like I was thoroughly spoiled last time! For me, the continuity is worth its weight in gold

[Undertheboredwalk]

I'm in Liverpool and used one2one in my last pregnancy and am using them in current one, am 23 weeks now. It never occurred to me to do anything else this time around. They are a world away from the community care, appointments at home when it suits you, scans at local clinics so no huge waits, lovely long detailed and very well explained scans. I love my midwife, I was able to request the same one I had with my son, so she is someone I already know and trust. The continuity of care makes an enormous difference to how supported you feel ime, I had a home water birth with my son and am planning the same this time around, it was an amazing experience (DS was dc3 so have 2 hospital births to compare) I can't recommend them enough really, they have the time and patience to give you all the personalised care you need, last time around I on more than one occasion ended up in text conversations with my midwife at 3am because I had pains that I was worried about. It ended up being nothing to worry about, but she was immediately available when I needed help and was hugely comforting and helpful, if I had still felt uneasy she would have come to me.
It really does feel like a luxury service and definitely a level of personal care that is just impossible anywhere else within the NHS!
Good luck :)

[Undertheboredwalk]

Oh and like Lumpy mentioned the post natal care is fantastic too, you keep the one midwife you know for at least 6 weeks after birth, longer if you need them. They will assist with breastfeeding or any other issues you have. For a couple of weeks DS wasn't feeding properly and we were worried about him losing weight, my midwife came to me every day during that period. In the community they'd have just referred me to the hospital and caused a lot more stress I'm sure!
The home care also means that they get to know your family too, it's important for me that my dh has a good trusting relationship with her too, and the kids know who she is and why she comes. She understand our family set up and what works for us and what doesn't :)

[waxweasel]

I've seen a lot of talk about them in parenting groups on FB and it's all been overwhelmingly positive. I would have referred to them in a flash if they covered my area (I checked - sadly they don't). I would definitely go for it if I were you, whatever birth you're planning.

[Jenjen85]

Thanks ladies all sounds very positive. Think I'll give them a call and see what/if they can take me on. As Iv not registered with a midwife yet I'm not sure what I need to do

[Jenjen85]

Quite impressed already. Completed the referral form online and 10mins later Debbie called me and is coming for a chat on Wednesday she will be my midwife if I want to go with them I'm sorry to say but you don't get that with the NHS

[Undertheboredwalk]

They are brilliant Jen, I'm still amazed at the service you can get for free with them! Good luck with everything :)

[LumpySpaceCow]

Brilliant! You won't regret it. I've just seen my 7th different midwife of this pregnancy....

[waxweasel]

So jealous!

[MotherKat]

I love mine, so much better than the community midwife who lied about everything.

[Autumn2014]

Wow never heard of this. Is it still an nhs service? Is it a new thing? Obviously not available in my area.

[Jenjen85]

It's not NHS but they work with them. If you Google one to one midwives it will tell you if they offer the service in your area.

[Jenjen85]

Just a quick update. Met my midwife and she is lovely. Explained everything, blood test done at home an can fit appointments in round me and my husband so he can be here. Very happy with the service so far

[Loujones27]

Hi. Just want to ask do one to one midwives make you have a home birth? Ive got my 1st appointment with 1 today im 25 weeks. I found the community midwives do not follow you properly. And i have to arrange my appointments with them!

[user1483473283]

Hi Lou,

I am 37 weeks with one2one in Essex and was clear from the start that homebirth wasn’t for us (had a 2L PPH with DC1) and they have never pushed the issue but equally are happy for me to have one if I want it even after the bleed last time.

I have nothing but good things to say about them so far - bloody fantastic!

[Loujones27]

Amazing thank you. Im still unsure of what i want anyway but just wanted to know if they push it on you