To expect to be able to park at the hospital when in labour?

[Therareotherbooks]

Last few antenatal appointments there hasn’t been a single car parking space on hospital site. The nearest on street spot I managed to find was 1/4 mile away and I had to call a taxi from the road side to drive me to the hospital doors.

I am now terrified about what will happen when I’m in labour. Obviously my DH will be with me so can drop me off but if he then has to go and park miles away I could be on my own for ages.

AIBU to expect there to be some designated car parking for women in labour?!

Ps if you overstay in the drop off zone for genuine medical reasons they cancel your ticket - dd has seizures and the instructions from triage was to leave the keys and they would sort it last time!

I agree with Sausage this exact scenario happens in hundreds of thousands of hospitals all over the world every day.

Of all the things to worry about, being separated from your DH for 10 minutes whilst in labour/ him scrawling a sign saying "Wife in labour" and chucking the car anywhere is really not a big deal.

I was worried about this but we ended up going in at midnight so no problem.

We had problems parking when I was in labour with my first. I got to hospital at around 3:30 in full blown labour. My husband parked the car in the pick up/drop off and shoved me in a wheelchair through the doors. We got into the labour room and my husband said to the midwives “I’m parked in the drop off point, shall I go move the car?” At which point the midwife said “yeah I wouldn’t do that mate, she’s going to have a baby fairly soon. I’ll get someone to put a note on.”
Sure enough when he finally left the hospital (11pm - I gave birth in less than 2 hours) the porter or whoever, had stuck a note on the window with something like “female occupant currently in labour. Full permission given by xxx head midwife of xxxx unit. Please speak to xxxx if any issues”
We didn’t get a fine or anything. It must be fairly common as they already had a pre printed note!

"We should all be driving a lot less - if it's a city especially - just get public transport."

My nearest maternity unit closed. The nearest one now is half hour drive or 1hr 15 to 2hr 30 by bus, with changes. Not a city, obviously. Imagine if you spent two hours getting there then got told to go home and wait a bit longer!

Also public transport can be non existent late at night and in the early hours of the morning.

I think I'd choose the car if I was pregnant again.

Thanks for the sensible suggestions.

I’ve explained several times- we love rurally. Hospital is 30 miles away- a 50 minute drive. Therefore taxi or public transport is not an option. It may be an option to park nearby and use a taxi to the door as I do for appointments, I would have to see how I feel at the time.

Most sensible is going to be DH dropping me off and then him sorting the cars

If it is during the day time I am already going to have to wait an hour for DH to make it home from work and 90 minutes for my parents to get here to watch DS so I won’t be rushing in at the first contraction.

At my local hospital you won’t ever get a space after 8am. For my appointments I took the bus. We took a taxi when I was in labour last time after researching companies beforehand. We’ll be doing the same this time.

Surely calling and waiting for a taxi took longer than it would to walk 1/4 of a mile!
Women give birth all the time. You won’t be on your own for ages whilst your DH parks the car!
FTM I’m guessing

*Purplelion

Read the thread. If you have SPD doesn’t matter if it’s 1/4 mile or 20 miles, it’s bloody impossible to walk it. And op has already mentioned she has another child. Jeez.

I have every sympathy for OP's SPD but surely the fact that the reason she can't walk 1/4 of a mile is a specific condition suffered by a small minority of pregnant women is evidence enough that all pregnant women don't need specific parking provision.

Worse case is that DH will drop you off. DH missed the birth of DC2 because he was with DC1 (inlaws hadn't arrived yet due to super speedy labour). It was just one of those things that happens. I was on my own with just the midwives but at that point it was more important that DC1 was okay.

With DC1 I laid it on thick with the midwives at 6am, so we could get in to see them before outpatients opened at 8am. Worked well, got a space right outside. DC2 was a 2:30am dash so car park was empty.

Most women in Labour can walk quarter of a mile or have someone drop them and go park (they'll probably be back before you've finished checking in). Much worse for a parent trying to take a sick kid to hospital, or someone elderly or disabled who needs help.

Of your first came quickly and you are realistically looking at a 90 minute wait at least between deciding to go and getting to the hospital (if you go into labour in the day time), is it worth considering a home birth? I should add, this would not be for me, but if there is a risk you might he landed with one anyway it might be good to at least investigate!!

Well you may be on your own for a few mi minutes yes.
Why did you call a taxi for a short walk?

@Hollowvictory read the thread!! I have SPD- I cannot manage a short walk! Anything over 200m is pretty unbareable.

@badg3r the earliest I can make it to a hospital is 90 minutes for my parents to get here to be with DS plus the 50 minute car journey.

I considered a homebirth but I decided I wouldn’t feel safe knowing in an emergency I would be so far from the hospital.

Oh dear that does sound tough. 💐💐

My dad has stage 4 cancer and a permanently collapsed lung. I take him to the entrance of the cancer unit on treatment days, he waits in a chair in the foyer for me or goes on ahead, I park up and join him. It’s easy enough. For the birth of my child I wouldn’t have cared if my husband was there or not, for my sake, but I’m very resilient and practical.

Why are so many people being rude to the OP? It's a perfectly reasonable question & hassle you don't need in Labour.

That’s correct Lavender but not a reason to prioritise women in labour over other hospital attendees

Do you have very severe SPD OP? Just wondering why you couldn’t walk 1/4 mile. I had SPD and while I would have been in pain I could still manage a 5 min walk right up to delivery
I could barely walk to the bathroom by 25 weeks with all of my kids. By 35 I had to use a wheelchair

@Espressomartin
But many other hospital attendees have scheduled appointments, they can make sure they arrive in plenty of time to find parking, and most visitors are physically fit to use public transport or walk.

I fully appreciate there are some people that should be prioritised over a woman in labour, there should be a system for them too.

How about dedicated car parks for departments that are likely to have patients with greater need. You have to be issued a ticket from the right department to be able to use the car park.

@OwlBeThere

I can’t believe I am still explaining this, or that people can’t understand that some people may experience a condition in a different way to them.

I am physically unable to walk 1/4 of a mile and have been unable to do this since around 28 weeks. I am on crutches for short walks and would need a wheelchair for anything of considerable distance.

I’m not sure why people are finding that so difficult to understand? I’m not making it up! Trust me I would much rather be able to make the short walk than have to mess around trying to get a taxi to take me a short distance!

A quarter of a mile is around a 6 minute walk. Therefore your partner can drop you off, park and be back with you within 10 minutes. Which to be honest doesn’t sound an issue

Sorry didn’t realise computer was logged on with a different name!

@Espressomartin
But many other hospital attendees have scheduled appointments, they can make sure they arrive in plenty of time to find parking, and most visitors are physically fit to use public transport or walk.

I fully appreciate there are some people that should be prioritised over a woman in labour, there should be a system for them too.

How about dedicated car parks for departments that are likely to have patients with greater need. You have to be issued a ticket from the right department to be able to use the car park.

@OwlBeThere

I can’t believe I am still explaining this, or that people can’t understand that some people may experience a condition in a different way to them.

I am physically unable to walk 1/4 of a mile and have been unable to do this since around 28 weeks. I am on crutches for short walks and would need a wheelchair for anything of considerable distance.

I’m not sure why people are finding that so difficult to understand? I’m not making it up! Trust me I would much rather be able to make the short walk than have to mess around trying to get a taxi to take me a short distance!