Neonatal unit still a support a year on?

[summerdreams]

My son a 33 weeker for lack of a better term just "failed" his one year check even though I made them wait till one year corrected. He did brilliantly on everything except gross motor and needed a refferal but the health visitor explained this could take months and advised contacting the neonatal drs that discharged him in april from there developmental clinic. I went straight to my gp to find out the name of who he used to see so my gp faxed a letter over and I rang up on gps advice and when ringing the number I found that it went through to the neonatal unit thinking I was in the wrong place I explained my situation and was reasured that health visitors often dont know enough about prems and got me an appointment in a weeks time with a consultant and I basicley was just thinking how lovely it is to be so supported by them a year on and how lucky I am really

[MadeinBelfast]

There are some fabulous consultants out there. Glad you're getting the support you need :)

[LavenderRain]

Where I work the prem babies have consultant appointments unitil they are 2 years old (if needed)

Good luck with your little boy, enjoy him

[summerdreams]

Thought I'd update, had his app and they said on a whole doing brilliantly maybe slightly delayed in gross motor but nothing to worry about doesn't need to be reffered on and could walk as he has the right balance he just wont without holding on to my finger ect. She also agreed his constant illness is proberly slowing it down a little so all good and discharged for the second time from there clinic

lavender rain there was children seeing the neonatal consultant in there school uniform must follow some for a long time (very big nicu) found it intresting watching all the ex prems and all my sons old drs

[LavenderRain]

That's good news OP,

[elliejjtiny]

That's good news. My 2 and 1 year olds still see their neonatal consultant.

[namechangedtoday15]

OP, I had a very bad experience with a HV when I weaned my premature twins early (on the advice of the neonatal consultant we were still seeing) and she told me I would have "damaged my children's digestive systems beyond repair".

I then had a telephone call about 5 months later asking me if my DD was ready for her heart surgery the following day. Back story was that my DD had been born with a minor heart condition but before we left the neonatal unit, we had been told it had corrected itself, but would be monitored. You can imagine my shock and worry when I thought she'd have to have a heart operation. I said I didn't know anything about it, went through the whole scenario, in tears at this point. Turned out there had been another set of twins born at a similar gestation to mine, and the girl had the same name as my daughter. The HV said "oops, looks like I've got the wrong baby - I'll have to get the file out".

Needless to say I put in a formal complaint. She was telephoning parents about a planned heart operation without even having the baby's details in front of her. She said she had a list of numbers to ring.

Long story short in that HVs are not trained on premature babies, particularly if they are born v early. If you have any worries or concerns at all my advice would be (and I know I'm not objective and there may be some HVs that are good, I've just never come across one) to bypass the HV completely and either go to your GP or telephone the unit.

My premature twins were seen by the consultant who'd treated them on the ward until they were 2.