effing 'clinical guidelines'...rant needed!

[divastropwantstodrop]

i will be 37 weeks tomorrow with baby no.5.i got pre-eclampsia with my first pregnancy and was induced at 39+2 after nearly 2 weeks in hospital.i developed pih in my 3 subsequent pregnancies and was induced at 38 weeks with all of them(before
things got too bad).
on sunday i collapsed at home after feeling dizzy/blurred vision,and was taken to hospital where they found my bp ahd risen dramatically.after about an hour or so it went back down and all the blood tests etc they did came back normal.
i was kept in overnight and my consultant said she wanted to start me on medication to control my bp(i was put on medication in my last 2 pregnancies).these tablets make me feel drowsy and horrible,they also give me headaches which makes it hard to tell if my head is hurting cos of my bp or not.
i have been booked in to be induced at 39 weeks,so today i asked the consultant if it could be brought forward to 38 weeks like the last 3,as im finding it difficult to cope with the tablets and im also scared that i could get seriously ill again ike i did in my first pregnancy.
she said they are no longer allowed to book 38 week inductions in advance due to new clinical guidelines,as the last hospital audit showed they had performed a high number of 38 week inductions and had to get the numbers down!the only way i would be induced at 38 weeks now would be in an emergency situation.
i think this is silly,i have to wait to get severe pre-eclampsia before they will do anything,rather than preventing it getting that bad in the first place.it makes no sense,especially as most planned c-sections are done at 38 weeks when there isnt even a risk to the baby.
sorry,i just needed to rant as i'm really annoyed the hospital seems to care more about numbers than individual women.

[incy]

Poor you. I've nothing to add but I do feel for you.

For what it is worth C sections guidelines may also have changed because our hospital will only carry out elective c sections at 39 weeks plus. Anything before this has to be an emergency. Not that it helps ....

Good luck and big hug x

[divastropwantstodrop]

thanks.maybe its changed all over the country then.i dont see how they can just decide to change things like that,without taking individual cases into consideration.

[kateyp]

Well - I am 35 weeks today and talk is that they want to either induce me or c section me at 38 weeks (due to one previous stillbirth at 26 weeks and pre-eclampsia last time).

So certainly not a country wide policy.

Seems a bit odd to me. But then a lot of medicine today seems to be target driven rather than patient driven.

(COI - am a GP so have been trying to "hit targets" a lot!)

[lulumama]

diva...sounds like the decision is being made based on their audit, rather than what is best for you and LO! am a little surprised actually, as pre eclampsia is serious. and if you have collapsed, then IMO, you should be delivered earlier if possible....

planned c.s are now being done around 39 weeks, rather than 38.

however, if your body is not ready for induction at 38 weeks, then you might well end up with a long long labour or c.s anyway, so maybe that is another reason to hang on?

can your DP or any family come and help you for the last week or two, especially if the meds make you feel awful?

[divastropwantstodrop]

i was induced with my last 3 at 38 weeks and all the inductions went smoothly,the last 2 took a while and i ended up with the drip but they were straightforward and problem-free.
i think the consultant was saying that she could do it at 38 weeks but it would have to be a last mintute decision.its a pain because my mum lives 350 miles away in ne london and i really need her to come up to look after the kids while dp comes in with me for the birth.he helps out alot but i hate feeling doped up,i'd rather not take the medication cos all it does is lower my bp,it cant stop me getting pre-eclampsia.i was on meds when i was in hospital expecting ds1 and my bp still went up to 170/115,with all the other symptoms.

sorry for still ranting,im stillthat some blokes in suits with calculators think they know better than doctors who've spent years studying.

[lulumama]

i absolutely agree , you rant away ! if you push for 38 weeks, will they agree, do you think?

[divastropwantstodrop]

i think i will just have to see how it goes.i have another appointment with the consultant tomorrow,i shall see what she has to say then