in thinking a 'check up scan' shouldnt be done in the same area as women having miscarriages, ectopics etc?

[misdee]

i had to have a scan today to check position of baby#5. apart from this, i have had an uncomplicated pregnancy.

However, I was very aware of through the doors is the ward for women whose pregnancies arent going so well. They are also scanned in the same area :(

My previous scans inc dating and anaolomy scans have been done in a different maternity unit. Obviously there will be cases down there when news isnt good for some. but to scan someone with no major issues in the same area as women losing their babies seem insensitive and wrong.

why is this happening?

really felt for the women going past me with my bump :(

In some hospitals they also do some of the cancer tests in the same place as pregnancy ultrasounds.

It is rotten and really horrible planning.

it was crap when I was scanned to check MC#1 had been complete and there were loads of pictures of babies around. That said, when I went back three years later for a 12 week scan, there were no such pictures and I felt it was much better (although a much happier scan). So maybe they got the message. (Hemel Hempstead hospital)

I was horrified to see that it is like this at my local hospital. A friend who had a recent miscarriage said it was heartrending to sit in a waiting room full of pregnant women.

Or people who are coping with a neonatal death or stillbirth having to recover in postnatal ward. Sadly this is the case in lots of hospitals still. (Not for me, we had a lovely room). Horrible.

When one of my sons was stillborn, the consultant insisted that they put me in a sideroom after the birth rather than a ward full of crying babies. I was in for 5 days following a caesarean. It was still bloody awful, but I will always be grateful for his kindness.

:) Whitelies, and :(

When I lost my babies we were always offered a side room and when I had a stillbirth we had a lovely room. But when I lost my first dc(24 wks) and went back for my 6 week check up had to sit in waiting room full of about to pop mums. I complained(also burst out crying!) and was promptly put into a private room.
Think most hospitals think this is good practise now?.

Limited resources. Our hospital only has 2 scanners so it would be impractical to have one for "normal" scans and one for those whre they suspected a miscarriage. They do try and run the early pregnancy scans at a different time of day from dating/anomoly scans but can't always do this.

It's in a completely different area in my local hospital. All the normal scans (12 week, 20 week etc) are upstairs in the out patient area. The early scans are 2 floors down in the early pregnancy unit, which is much more private, with no baby pictures etc.

I can only think of two situations where someone might be scanned in the less appropriate area - MMCs discovered at routine scans, and early reassurance scans where everything turns out to be ok.

However I know from reading comments on MN that this hospital is a lot better than many others in the country.

I think its about timing. I know some places will schedule complicated pregnancies all for the same day (Tuesday) and so on - if they cannot double the space they can at least consider the occupants and the timing. I don't know why that's not more common a practice.

When I was in a gynaecological ward, having just been told that I would probably never be able to have children (turned out to be total tosh, thank goodness) I was in a bed next to a woman who was having an early termination (and had to stay in hospital a few days due to a minor complication). Now, I have no problem with her decision - I do believe it's each woman's right to choose - but she spent her time perkily pondering whether it would have been a boy and speculating on its eye colour etc. I found that deeply upsetting - she was so upbeat about it.

I remember crying my eyes out after being told I'd had a missed miscarriage, and the waiting room being full of happy couples cooing over their pictures.

I actually changed hospitals because of that. it wasn't fair on anyone.

I was scanned every two weeks from 6 to 32 weeks in my last pregnancy. All but the standard 12 and 20 week ones were done in the EPU. I did feel guilty sitting there with my bump (when it was noticable) as most women were having/threatening to have miscarriages.

Misdee - was it at the QE2? They generally use the scanning dept in the Gynae ward as an EPU in the morning and as a MDU in the afternoon. WHen I was an inpatient after having a late miscarraige there I must admit that I really didn't motice the women being scanned as I think they give private rooms for miscarriages.

I've been to the same place for my normal scans and pregnancy appointments, scan after bleeding, appointment after scan showed twin had died and to be told I had cervical cancer

I hate that department now

It's not ideal!

Scary for you, horrible for them. whoever set that one up is either a)childless b)a bloke c)utterly lacking in empathy d)a moron e)all of the above!

"Why is this happening?"

Lack of facilities due to lack of funds.

Same story with post natal wards (especially with PN, as it's the cinderella of maternity services.

I like the idea of different days. Personally I think being sent to the "pregnancy loss" waiting room would be more depressing.

Sorry for everyone who had to cope with stillbirths amid healthy babies and happy mums. Can't imagine how horrible that must have been.

When I had MC#2, it was a MMC and I found out at the 12 wk scan. Ok, couldn't have been predicted, but the door had been left ajar and I couldn't help my very loud sobs. I just kept on thinking about all the pregnant women waiting literally 5 metres round the corner who could hear my distress. And about having to walk past all those bumps on the way out. Sonographer was completely non-plussed, like she'd never considered that MCs could be fairly distressing.

What we need, actually, aside from special areas for women presenting with problems in early pregnancy, is more midwife-sonographers. I've only had those this pregnancy and they are brilliant - they make all the difference, as they have people-skills and have a background in working with pregnant and miscarrying women from the women's POV, rather than operating a machine.

YANBU it really isn't fair.

Riven I totally agree. NB DD and I were crammed with 3 other mums and their babies. except 1 mum didn't have hers with her as he was special care. He was born at 29 weeks. From what I gathered he was very sick The sound of her sobbing for her baby that night was heartbreaking.

All infertility investigations, etc have been spent nestled in between smiley bump bearing ladies. I don't think too much about it - resources are limited, I suppose.

But very harsh with antenatal situations that have hd sad outcomes

I wrote a letter about this to Chief Exec of St Thomas's and cc'd Andrew Lansley after spending 2 days at the waiting room in the Early Pregnancy Unit. I was horrified by the situation.
They did write back to me and say, as Peering says - no other option.
However they did respond to some other concerns/bits of feedback I had in a satisfactory way. I think the staff can see it's far from ideal to seat women suffering miscarriages/ectopic pregnancies next to those having standard scans, but I suppose they (the staff) become immune to it after a while.

I discovered with my last mc that my local hospital does indeed have another scanning suite that's next to x-ray and nowhere near the maternity unit. Only found out because I was an inpatient as a result of complications with the actual mc. And it does get used for outpatients because that is where I had a further scan after 2nd erpc to confirm they'd actually done it properly this time.

Oh I remember being in hospital after having ds, all the mums went to the dining area to eat at the same time and I was so happy ds had been checked over and we were going home the next day and going on about it, one poor woman got up and left, her baby was seriously ill and I didn't realise, felt awful for her