To sue the NHS over my birthing experience

[boomitscountginula]

Now before I get flamed to death. I do appreciate my birth story isn't as bad as some but, I now refuse to have another baby unless I can get assurances that this won't happen again, and the only way I can do so is to go private, I think.? It was traumatic to me.

I had a quite easy birth, in terms of how long it took "officially" but I wasn't listened to and have a couple of long lasting injuries I think could of been prevented if they believed I was in labour to begin with.

My birth story: I woke up the day after my due day and had lost my plug over night. Went for a stretch and sweep at lunch, (planned as it was my first) with my midwife said I was 3cm already.

Fabulous, no pain at the minute, now 3cm easy birth.. so I thought.

Went home had a nap, woke up with contractions near tea time. By 9pm they where regularly 6 minutes apart so rang the maternity ward, had a phone assessment and went in.

Got into maternity triage, in absolute agony, had a physical exam and the triage said:

"Your only 3 cm, you need to come home and come back."

I said well as you can see, I am contacting every 6 minutes and less now, the pain is overwhelming and I feel like I need to push.

She tutted and said in all her experience she had never been wrong and I had hours to go, so needed to go home.

I was in bits at this news and crumbled. I never wanted an epidural and chose pethidine (sic) and gas and air. So agreed I would go home but I needed some kind of pain killer, that I could have with my chosen birth plan. I really put my foot down and said I will go home but only if I can get a pain killer stronger that the 2 paracetamol I had taken already.

She said she would find a doctor, but never came back.

Meanwhile I then go into the advanced stages of Labour. Bare in mind I had two paracetamol and my waters haven't broken. It's like trying to birth a gym ball.

I am literally screaming in pain in a side room in maternity triage, pushing and effectively giving birth myself. My partner and my mum (both birth partners) took it in turns to find anyone. But no one came for 45 minutes.

After 45 minutes a junior midwife came in and said "oh my god your in labour".

Me and her literally ran to the deliver ward, where I was given gas and air.

I took a massive gulp of it, and was told off, because I should only take it when I am in pain and contracting..... never mind the two hours I have just been in hospital alone labouring, without a monitor on my baby or any pain relief.

I am still not hooked up to monitor, the only medical intervention is gas and air right now. My waters still haven't broken, 4 minutes later I was given the pethidine. 2 minutes after that I crown, baby in sack. Midwife broke the waters and my son was born. My official record shows that I was in labour for 9 minutes.

I had pain relief 4 minutes into my 9 minute birth and at no point was I on any kind of contraction monitoring machine. Nothing monitoring baby's heartbeat etc etc. I might as well have birthed in the woods.

I also split my right labia in two during the birth. The midwife didn't want to stitch it because it wasn't that bad.. yet I couldn't pee, unless in the bath for 3 weeks, and now that side is an inch longer than the other. Causing me, well you can imagine.

Start to finish I was treated like dirt, I was left labouring in a room alone, I was belittled and injured without proper treatment. And now I am afraid to be pregnant again.

I love the NHS, but they have let me down, massively. I am permanently injured (labia) and mentally scarred. But hate the idea of sueing the NHS on a theoretical level...

www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-midwife-supervision-in-the-uk

Bit late to write to your mp, its happened.

When I eventually got the courage to complain about my shit treatment it was “reported “ to the supervisor. I got a “yeah , whatever” kind of response. Followed by an apology of sorts from the hospital. Who subsequently got slammed in the Keogh Report. Not sure that the supervisor process made any difference.

Yeah the removal of supervision was a sad moment for midwifery. Although ‘supervision’ meant something different to the classical role of a supervisor in most settings. It was a unique feature of midwifery which helped support midwives as well as women. For example in one context supporting a midwife to provide care to a woman outside of guidelines - ie a homebirth ‘against advice’ or vbac in the pool (although that’s quite mainstream now).

Please don’t think that means that A) we are not regulated. We still are just as much by the NMC and our work place. Or B) we won’t be able to advocate for women the same - we will. Our trust has replaced supervisors with a role similar that just doesn’t have the statutory element but does have some of the same functions.

Of course everyone should have a fully qualified midwife - they do. Of course there will be a range of skills as junior midwives need to be supported by more senior ones to develop these. No one is born a fully experianced midwife. BUT saying that, good attitude and care, kindness and compassion is a basic basic skill and everyone deserves that and every midwife and HCP should provide that. If they can’t they are in the wrong job.

Midwives are a totally different profession to nurses and while people may think we should ‘do as we are told’ by doctors I really believe this is not in the interests of women and families. I do not ‘disobey’ or anything like that but I certainly advocate for what an individual wants. And what an individual wants is sometimes in conflict with guidelines and doctors opinions. Midwives are that thin line, that buffer, that supporter that finds a way to help women have the birth they want. Whatever that might be.

Sadly, sunshine, it wasn’t the midwives who helped me. It was the doctors. Midwives were next to hopeless in advocating for me.

Oh fair enough.. midwife training is a 3 year degree same as nursing isn't it?

Oh fair enough.. midwife training is a 3 year degree same as nursing isn't it?

Yes, unless already a nurse then it is a 1 year ‘top up’

You need closure. Make a complaint. Ask to see the notes. Seek help in rectifying badly healed tear and possible ptsd. If they refuse to help then threaten suing.

Going private does not guarantee you a blissful birth. All medical staff are still people. And hence make mistakes. Just like that first "I've never been wrong" midwife.

I had an almost identical experience which was saved by an emergency csection. Which was bliss. All the pin stopped and the baby finally came out. I wouldn't change a thing but I also had the "no you are not in labour" thing from the midwife. Who later ate her stupid words.

If there were more money in the NHS and it wasn't being cut to shreds and sold off there would be better care, more staff etc etc.

I hope you find peace and find the right outcome and closure.

And congratulations ❤️

Fastasleep I am glad someone advocated for you and I am sorry your midwives let you down.

Horrific experience giving birth. Ended up having a caesarean I didn't need. Can't have anymore kids due to scarring from caesarean. I didn't sue. Still very angry though.

op you were treated like shit and you deserved better. I think it IS worth complaining - firstly you get to tell someone (who has to at least listen to you) what happened and how you feel about it. Secondly you will add to the avalanche of women telling these stories and one day it will finally be acknowledged that maternity care is not fit for purpose, and investment and improvements will be made.

Please PLEASE seek counselling for the trauma you experienced. You deserve to be able to put this crap experience behind you properly. It doesn't look like you have been able to do that on your own to date, so please get some professional help - it changed my life when I did the same for my traumatic birth experience.

You are missing the point. The fact your son is healthy is not the point. We all expect a healthy baby. I think they forget about the mothers. They simply do not care. I'd like to see it happen to them and then see what they have to say about it.

What do want from it? Money?

Yanbu to ask for answers from them.
Yabu to sue - there a hundreds more women who have gone through far worse than you.

Would money from a service on it’s bruised arse actually help you heal from what is undeniable a horrible birth experience?? Even with better treatment you could have been left with a tear anyway. I can sympathise but how will suing help? Closure ? A conversation can do that, birthing is highly emotional, exhausting, painful and difficult, I hope I’m not coming across as cold hearted but I can’t see what you will gain.

🧟‍♂️

Meh
It sounds like a fairly normal shitty birth

Not dismissing your suffering but the NHS need more money

So they have more staff

So what happens if you sue them ?

Complain and debrief by all means

But sue for what ? What will money do

Oh yea ! Ops

Four childbirth in three different hospitals, three hideous experience. Unfortunately maternity wards are massively understaffed and underfunded. I agree with previous posters. Complain yes. Sue no. Sorry for your horrible experience though. I had a very quick labour with my 4th and it was awful too.

If you can afford it go private

Zombie thread, guys

You need a debrief and should have asked for one sooner.
For example babies do not routinely have their hearts monitored nordo you need monitoring when in active labour.
I had similar in as much as my waters didn't break ,when they were I went from 0-10cm,no one believes me.I gave birth shortly after and had an episiotomy and tore.I had the birth run through like a badfilm for ages trying to make sense of it.Had a debrief as my recall was a bit different to the hard fact,not surprising when you are full of hormones and the speed with which it happened.
If you do have a second child then talk to you midwives before the birth,find out what to expect but do not expect it to be pain or trauma free or to have a midwife sitting with you the entire time.

Dear BatteredBreadedOrSouthernFried I find your message appalling. The op is clearly upset. Her experience is all too common and it is the nhs to blame. If the nhs is unable to provide suitable care for patients then it should be disbanded. Simple as that. We are not a third world country, but women giving birth in our hospitals are treated like farmyard animals. Midwives are useless and I really don't see their purpose. They are neither doctors nor nurses. They 'specialise' in one area and they do that very badly. Too many women are traumatised by the nhs. They aren't listened to and end up having to live with the trauma inflicted upon them for the rest of their lives due to inept nhs workers. She shouldn't have to pay for decent healthcare. She's already paying for it through taxes regardless. The nhs is the single biggest waster of public funds. That is the problem. Not the op.

Zombie thread!!

Forgot to say. I had a debrief after being butchered at the hands of the nhs and you know what they said. They said I forgot what they said to me. When it became apparent that I knew exactly what was happening at the time, they sharp changed their tune to 'wel, if it's in your notes, it must be right'. My notes are wrong. They couldn't even weigh me correctly (weighed me at 12.5 stones when I was 8, so not much difference!). They did some awful things to me without my knowledge and signed it off stating I agreed. I did not. Ended up with a butchered section and still suffering a year later. I hate them for what they did to me, It was unnecessary too. Their intervention caused the problems. There was nothing wrong with me before they got their hands on me. I am currently halfway through a formal complaint and it looks like it will be going to the ombudsman next. They're a bunch of cranks in my opinion.

Ok not RTFT but you don't need to be wired up to a monitor if there aren't other complications, e.g. gestational diabetes or induction.
I agree with them not listening though. I had gestational diabetes with my DD and they still tried to send me home, even though I was supposed to be monitored throughout, when I told the midwife I needed to push she said 'no you don't and walked off, not even a minute later another midwife came in and checked me and I was crowning. They never listen to first time mothers and think they know better. If I hadn't of had my MIL with me and my DH they would have sent me home, a 30 minute drive away without traffic (its always gridlocked around the hospital) and I wouldn't have made it back in time.