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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To be angry about how long it took to be discharged from hospital yesterday?

84 replies

Kirisox · 05/02/2011 06:22

Gave birth to DS last Saturday afternoon via emcs and both he and I had further complications resulting in a stay in hospital. I was told by both of our doctors at 11am on Friday that they were happy for us to be discharged today, but I would just need to wait for my notes and prescription.
My poor, supportive, amazing DP and I were still waiting to leave with very few updates at 6 pm and eventually left at 7. I can honestly say today was the low point of what was otherwise a reasonable post natal care experience.
The main delay was caused by the labour ward failing to have written up my notes when I left there for the post natal care, and when this was done my attending midwife was unsure of how to use the relevant computer system to transfer the notes (or something like that...). This is the same labour ward who failed to recognise how much blood i lost during surgery which meant i needed a transfusion on Monday.
AIBU to think it's being unreasonable to wait this long for discharge paperwork?

OP posts:

activate · 05/02/2011 07:00

if it's the only complaint you have about post-op care in an NHS maternity ward then I think you're lucky

I have horrible stories of post-op care amongst my 4 births.

but no you're not unreasonable, it is just not uncommon nor unusual

congratulations on your DS though

JeezyPeeps · 05/02/2011 07:39

It is a hospital, and funnily enough, they do have other priorities (you know, people actually in labour, emergencies, that kind of thing).

YANBU to be a little impatient, but YABU to think that it is significant enough to post on here.

activate · 05/02/2011 07:40

do things now have to be significant to be posted?

there goes 90% of the threads

OffToNarnia · 05/02/2011 07:44

Generally it can take a long time to leave hospital. I have been a carer and many a time sat for hours waiting for prescriptions before discharge. sometimes the people I have been waiting with have 'lost' their beds while waiting. In my opinion YANBU.

PuppyMonkey · 05/02/2011 07:44

YANBS has a ring to it - you are not being significant .

Congrats on baby and forget hospitals etc now. Least your home and safe. Good luck me duck.

dinkystinky · 05/02/2011 07:47

congrats on your DS. Hope you're enjoying being home now.

YANBU to be pissed off but to be honest, its fairly common place and you're not the only one - when DS1 was born we were kept in for 4 days - and that was because it took 24 hours to get all the paperwork sorted out for us to be discharged!

spongebobsquareknickers · 05/02/2011 07:50

What really bugged me with waiting to be discharged was everyone saying "how come they didnt let you go home within 4 hours like normal , was something wrong?"

Haha, I like YANBS !!

softglowsandmaybes · 05/02/2011 07:51

congratulations on your little man!!

I think you have things the wrong way round - the discharge thing is annoying but trivial in the scheme of things. But you said the labour ward failed to notice you had lost too much blood!!! See, that would be what i would be AIBU about!

I hope you feel better soon x

Pheebe · 05/02/2011 07:51

YANBU to be irritated but put it behind you now and try not to make it the abiding memory of your son's birth. As jeezypeeps said they do have other priorities (sick people, emergency admissions etc)

Congratulations

girlylala0807 · 05/02/2011 07:54

This happened to me. However, they took there time to discharge me/write my notes as I signrd myself out about 40 hors after emsc as I could not cope being in hospital any longer! Aparently its common though.

weefriend · 05/02/2011 07:55

I've always had to wait around for hours for discharge from hospital, not just after having a baby. It is incredibly frustrating but it's just the way it goes. The staff are just too busy dealing with other stuff I guess. It does seem inefficient though if you're there taking up a bed and getting ons done and stuff all the time just because you are there.

libelulle · 05/02/2011 07:57

I'm guessing you're lucky enough not to have had many hospital stays- that actually sounds quite normal as discharge waiting times go. I've sometimes waited from 7am to nearer 10pm before everything has been in place. It is annoying, but if you are well enough to leave it's also fair enough that you become their lowest clinical priority. If you had an emergency c section it's quite probable that someone else was being kept waiting to go home so that you could have the full midwife attention you deserved - not sure you'd have been very impressed if the midwife had popped out of the room when you most needed her just so she could go and sort out someone elses discharge papers:)
Congrats on the baby btw!

TmiEdward · 05/02/2011 08:06

We waited 8 hours to be discharged with ds1 because the couldn't get a Paediatric doctor to do ds's checks. They kept getting called to A&E for emergencies.
It's not great to be kept waiting, but the staff don't do it just to give themselves a laugh. They are busy and emergencies pop up

Mishy1234 · 05/02/2011 08:08

Frustrating, but quite usual going by my experience and that of my friends. Just higher priorities for the staff I suppose.

Bluemoonrising · 05/02/2011 08:13

I think Jeezy has a point. In terms of problems at hospitals, waiting to be discharged is really NOT significant! There was a recent news story about a woman who gave birth in a hospital toilet - that really is worth moaning about.

You can, of course, leave the hospital at any time. You are not a prisoner and you do not need to be officially discharged.

Awhiteelephantintheroom · 05/02/2011 08:13

I would have just gone....

nymphadora · 05/02/2011 08:17

I started on the Saturday & was discharged Sun am. I wanted to girl early but Drs said another night. In the meantime baby had been checked & all my meds arrived. This meant Sun am all I had to do was basic checks then I escaped!

agedknees · 05/02/2011 08:51

YANBU.

But other people have said before me that a discharge must be at the end of the list for a midwife - who is probably the only qualified staff on the post-natal ward.

I hope you do complain - but complain about the staffing levels that made this situation happen.

Nowadays hospital wards (general and maternity) are staffed by the lowest number of qualifieds they can get away with and bulked up by unqualifieds. This makes the numbers look good, but when you think that only qualifieds can give drugs, put up blood transfusions, complete discharges, take blood etc etc and they often have 24 patients to look after you can see why the discharge might be put at the end of their list.

Not excusing the time it took for you to be discharged, but offering an explanation.

I think it is time for this country to have legalised nurse/midwife to patient ratios. At the moment clinical staff have all the responsibility but are given no rights (how many patients they can safely manage).

Congratulations on the birth of your baby.

MorticiaAddams · 05/02/2011 08:58

YANBU to be angry about it yesterday but YABU to still be angry today.

You are not the only patient on the ward. Hadn't you noticed how run off their feet the poor hospital staff are?

You need to get over it and enjoy being at home with your baby. Why waste this precious time being angry about something insignificant in the grand scheme of things and that you can't change?

HappyMummyOfOne · 05/02/2011 10:52

YABU, it was a few hours delay whilst staff find the time around emergencies births etc to discharge you.

Be thankful that the care you both needed was available and free.

Syxx · 05/02/2011 10:54

YABU the world doesn't revolve around you

bubblewrapped · 05/02/2011 10:54

To be honest, I would have thought that you would have been enjoying being at home with your new baby, not coming here for a moan like this.

lockets · 05/02/2011 10:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

forasong · 05/02/2011 11:01

Congratulations ...

and just to correct another poster, for your little baby the world certainly does revolve around you.

PS - I wonder if you could have just sneaked out. Has anyone ever done that?

bb99 · 05/02/2011 11:06

YABU

Hospitals are v. busy places.

After a bad tear with DC2 I had to wait for a whole day to get discharge papers, even after they'd kept me in for over 24 hours and I was DESPERATE to get home to DC1 and family. It was a real PITA esp. as I even saw other people off the ward getting discharged before me, having had a shorter stay, but MWs were working really hard and trying to get everything done ASAP. One woman opposite was swearing/shouting and really horrible to the staff, tho she'd only just given birth - another reason to get off the ward

After dc1s appendectomy we again had to wait for over 8 hours for the trainee surgeon to complete notes - that was a really long day! But Trainee surgeon had been in theatre doing all sorts of important life saving things, so...

We're so fortunate to have access to the care we do get in this country - in the USA and many other countries it's a whole different and scary story...

Not good they missed the blood loss, but all ok now - yes?

Enjoy your baby and your time at home now.

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