To ask what the position is with taking babies home from hospital?

[scoopingthewater]

Do you need a car seat? What if you don’t drive?

Our car seat is a fixed isofix type that doesn’t come out of the car.

When baby was born in May, it’s was in the middle of Covid lockdown, Dh wasn’t allowed back inside hospital. I just put baby in sling, wheeled small suitcase and walked out the hospital once paperwork was done. I just told them car seat was fixed in car and they didn’t question or ask to see it.

Thank you topsey, it certainly wasn’t my intention to be so! I was just wondering and it has been really nice reading everyone’s stories anyway.

The OP has said quite clearly that she does drive but was just asking a hypothetical question. I get it. I often ponder over things that probably will never affect me but I would still like to know what the answer is!

I walked home with DS2.

We brought a car seat to the hospital, I felt brilliant after giving birth, would've done it again the same day happily (a huge contrast to my other two births!) but DS needed kept in.

By day 4 when he came home I'd been running around all over the place already so just brought a pram to walk home with him. It was summertime and a gorgeous day for it.

I did ask the midwife if I had to bring a car seat and she looked a little confused, explained I'd read online I couldn't leave without one and she said it was fine.

I live in walking distance from the hospital and took my dd home in a pram. Next time I think I would just take a carrier as half way home she cried and I just picked her up and held her for five minutes until we reached home.

Interesting thread. When I first gave birth two decades ago in central London (just off Tottenham Court Road) the midwife walked us down to the car with her actually carrying the baby in the car seat. There was no question of us leaving without one, even though we did technically live in walking distance. I'm sure people must have taken their babies home from there by cab or on the tube/on foot, though I can remember lots of warnings about remembering to bring your car seat at the ante-natal classes. This was pre-congestion charge etc, and we were able to drive up and park right outside the hospital. I wonder what their policy is now.

Legally taxis are exempt from the car seat requirement. I contacted RoSPA, whose recommendation for taking a taxi without a car seat was to ask for a wheelchair-accessible one, and to place the pram sideways to the direction of travel.

I would ask what hospital policy is for those going home by taxi or public transport. If they will require a car seat for you to get a taxi, ask around on local facebook groups or similar and see if someone will lend you one - people often have an outgrown baby seat in the loft waiting for the next child.

I have heard people say “oh they wouldn’t have let us leave without a car seat even if we didn’t have a car”, but I don’t know how the hospital would possibly enforce that. Maybe their maternity wards are full of 10-year-olds who still aren’t allowed to leave until they don’t need a booster seat?

lanthanum I am worried people will snap at me for being spiky but I genuinely thought that said the RSPCA then!

We took DD home by black cab (born in London) and we asked the hospital if her pram or car seat would be better. They advised pram. We then had to go back a couple of times within the next week and she was in the pram in the black cab every time.

I cannot believe that a mother would actually be stopped from leaving, I think we are all programmed to be so docile and do what we are told that we just assume we cannot leave until we have been 'supervised' strapping our new baby into the car seat. What would happen if you just kept walking away?

And if you were too frightened to leave would the hospital just put you up in the ward for ever? .

Not being personally bolshy - 20 years since I left hospital with my baby in his second hand car seat.

Incidentally, I struggled to walk more than a few steps for a good few days after my VB. But it was a difficult birth and I had lots of stitches, and was sent home with a catheter with a leg bag.

Unless they can't to call the police and file for an urgent court order (by the time you'd be long home) the hospital can say what they like, but do nothing. It's upto the parents, and it would surely be a waste of police and courts time (and the hospital would be criticised) for trying to stop a mum taking a child home by pram or carrier.

I think a lot of people think they have to do what a hospital tells them.They have to be induced, they have to have forceps, they have to have an emergency section, they have to take baby home by car. The hospital can give advice, and may not remind a person they gave a choice, but the final decision is always the parents.

@GoldenOmber

I have heard people say “oh they wouldn’t have let us leave without a car seat even if we didn’t have a car”, but I don’t know how the hospital would possibly enforce that. Maybe their maternity wards are full of 10-year-olds who still aren’t allowed to leave until they don’t need a booster seat?

DH and community MW both said that - but wasn't sure we'd by up for an argument post birth with first baby - so just got travel system.

After that few occasions with Taxi and baby - we did black cab and kept baby in pushchair as car seat bit was heavy and not good for baby to be in long time when out and about - it clicked on top so couldn't use pushchair bit when it was in place and couldn't store elsewhere- so we tended not to have car seat with us.

It is a few years back for me, but when I had mine the rule was baby will not be discharged from hospital if you did not show them the car seat you were taken them out in. End of.
I think you should ask your hospital about their rules. Have you done the hospital visit yet? It was the last part of my antenatal lessons. Are they doing these one through covid? I hope so. They aere really good for first time parents.

We had difficulties with this when dd was born. Neither of us had a driving licence, our plan was that I would go home in a taxi (having had stitches and not really able to walk well) and that dh would walk dd home in her very comfortable pram. Hospital wouldn't allow it, we didn't have the confidence to argue, so dh rang round and eventually identified someone from his work who was able to come and pick us up and lend us a car seat for the day.

We are in South UK and our car seat isn't one you take out the car. My husband carried DS out and down to the car. Midwives didn't even ask x

Pretty sure we were not asked about car seat ! Just walked out with DH and baby in a papoose. We had appropriate car seat in the car ( what if you do not feel the need for a frequently ridiculously expensive and pointless travel system).

They aren’t doing anything like that at the moment mush

No antenatal classes and no being shown around the hospital.

The midwife running our antenatal class laughed when someone asked if we were allowed to leave without a car seat. She said what do you think we'd do, stand in the doorway and not let you pass?

Whatever you're planning to transport them home in is all you need. Pram, sling, carseat.

@MushMonster

It is a few years back for me, but when I had mine the rule was baby will not be discharged from hospital if you did not show them the car seat you were taken them out in. End of. I think you should ask your hospital about their rules. Have you done the hospital visit yet? It was the last part of my antenatal lessons. Are they doing these one through covid? I hope so. They aere really good for first time parents.

End of? And do they have a cell to lock you up in if you don't show a car seat

If they refuse to discharge you, you could just discharge yourself. They can hardly keep you there against your will.

Yeap, she said no car seat, no discha0rge for the baby. They were very adamant.
We do drive, so we had the car seat. So I did not argue.
But this came up as they asked to see the car seat. And they said the baby will not be let out without it. Honestly.

My husband had to bring the car seat in. They looked at it. And I started to get ready to leave. They did then remove the tag from her foot and discharge her.