Is it U to call an ambulance for labour if there is no immediate danger?

[Where4l]

Not first baby.

5-10 minute ride by taxi to the hospital or 15 mins (ish) by bus. No complications and not a high risk pregnancy. Plenty of time to get there by either of the above, as in baby not imminent, early labour but calls an ambulance to get to the hospital.

Unreasonable or not?

When I was pregnant I was told that if I didn't have any transport to call the Labour ward and they would arrange transport for me. I was told not to call 999 unless it was a life/death emergency.

This scenario caused me so much stress during my pregnancy. I was 40 minutes in a taxi from the hospital or 1.5 hours on a bus. Hospital wouldn’t accept me until active labour, but taxi wouldn’t transport me in active labour due to the chance of making a mess in the taxi!

I wasn’t keen on sitting on the bench outside in early labour, so I stressed and stressed until I was admitted with high blood pressure.

9 months of stress didn’t give me access to a car sadly. Not sure what I’d have done if I hadn’t become ill with life threatening blood pressure!! My family lived too far away to drive me at short notice.

@Poppitt58 I'm sorry that happened to you. I'm same distance but no buses. Dh does drive, although farmer often without signal. But the saddest thing is that you didn't feel there was any type of support you could access. A neighbour, mine are four miles but would have come had I needed them. A friend, closest half hour but would come. A pregnancy support group, a doula service for ideas, midwife for ideas. I would have taken anyone asking for sure, stranger or friend.

When I was pregnant with dd1 I asked the best way to get to the hospital (no car, only just moved into the area so didn't know anyone) and the hospital told me to call 999 and ask for an ambulance.

In the event it was slow enough so I did go in by bus (only 15 minutes by bus) but I wouldn't have been able to do that with dc3 (admittedly I left it a little too long and he was born abut 20 minutes after I arrived).

If it's as simple as that then it's unreasonable.

I had a footling breech baby, bicornuate uterus and needed an ELCS. I didn't drive either, and the hospital told me if labour started and I couldn't get a taxi, as was often the case, then I could call for an ambulance.

So I think it's a lot more nuanced but if it really is as straightforward as you say then yes very unreasonable.

I went in a taxi at 29 weeks and private car at 30 weeks. Completely over precious

Quite a few paramedics have tales of wheeling someone into the maternity ward (who could have made other arrangements, it's not uncommon for relatives to go "I'll follow the ambulance in my car" so they could have taken her in the first place) and the midwife gave the patient a severe telling off "I told you not to call an ambulance".

So unless it is an emergency, don't call an ambulance. If transport is genuinely a problem then ask the maternity unit for advice.

My sister did this 😂 I don't think she was high risk. She lives about one hour away from the hospital and her boyfriend doesn't drive, so didn't have a car. I think she just didn't want to spend the money on a taxi. 😂

Totally unreasonable. Plenty of time to prepare for this with family and friends or call a taxi but if not an emergency an ambulance is not required.
We have had people arriving in triage with all sorts in an emergency ambulance and relatives following behind in their cars. You wouldn't believe ths misuse of the emergency services.

Waiting for the drip feed

@AutumnLeaves21 when my DD was suspected meningitis, the wait time for an ambulance was 2 hours; the ambulance place? (HQ?, station?) rang me after being on the phone to 111 and asked if there was any way to get DD to hospital myself as they wouldn’t be happy leaving her to wait for 2 hours for an ambulance. - Whoch I thought was really sensible, I drive and albeit our hospital is 50 minutes away, that’s quicker than 2 hours and I do think they should be checking with people who are either ringing on behalf of someone or a child if there is another way of getting there. I didn’t immediately offer because I just thought being told to sit and wait for an ambulance meant one was coming regardless and I didn’t want them to turn up and me be gone. I think when people call 111 and are told an ambulance will be sent, that that’s just what we accept. I think it should be asked if there’s any other mode of transport they could take if it means getting there quicker than an ambulance could, this could take a light load off the ambulance service (probably not by much though!) and means that people who are in pain or need treatment aren’t waiting longer than they have to.

But then I’m not sure how unrealistic that is, I don’t work in the field and I don’t often have to ring 111/999 so I might just be living in an ‘ideal world’ state of mind

I was quite young with my first baby and i called an ambulance, they came and took me but I got told off for wasting their time. I did stay in and have him but there were complications in the end and I ended up staying in hospital for a week after the birth. Second baby, waters broke at home and I got a taxi, gave birth soon after and was home the same day.

Anyone who calls an ambulance in these circumstances should be made to pay for it. Disgusting.

I went by ambulance with #2, but in fairness I was in the midst of a precipitous labour and he was well en route

@FrankiesKnuckle , thank you for all you do!

@stripetop
Thanks it was super stressful.

Plenty of time to prepare for this with family and friends or call a taxi
Taxis were very upfront about not driving labouring women for 45 minutes when we enquired. Not everyone has friends and family who can drive.

I think the average cost to the nhs for an ambulance call out and trip is about £600. So very unreasonable if as simple as OP describes.

@Learntoloveyourself

Waiting for the drip feed

Me too.

Can we have the full story rather than a little teaser?

I think unless you’ve been told to call an ambulance because of a pre existing condition or there is some sort of clearly dangerous situation happening then it’s unreasonable.

I had excess fluid and had my waters broken in hospital to avoid a myriad of complications - I was told if they broke at home that I should call 999 immediately due to the risk of cord prolapse.

A friend of mine had a very fast first labour (under an hour) and was told to call an ambulance if she went into labour alone at home with her second (thankfully her Mum happened to be with her when she went into labour with her second - who was born at home less than 20 minutes later!).

My friend waited 10 hours for an ambulance when she went into labour at home. She had given birth a couple of minutes after calling them.

An ambulance will probably take about 14hrs to show up and still cost the taxpayer about £600. (I work for the ambulance service)

You will probably give birth before an ambulance arrives. Sadly.
I wish people can be more sympathetic to the OP. Not everyone has the luxury of having family and friends nearby to help.

" but calls an ambulance to get to the hospital" - what makes people think the op is talking about herself?

If you called an ambulance around here, it might arrive 2 days after you'd given birth!