to be cheesed off with my midwife team

[Thingiebob]

Bit long and probably me just ranting slightly...

I saw two midwifes for my booking-in appt. They were excellent, referred me to a consultant due to an underlying health prob I have, sorted out lots of appts for me etc. I left feeling very confident. Then the next appt I had was at 18 weeks. I saw a different midwife who I wasn't that impressed with to be honest. I was her last appointment that day, it was obvious she was in a rush and so on and she couldn't answer any of my questions, nor could she do a urine test as she had no sticks. She did not have her diary on her either and was unable to make my next appt telling me that the team would be in touch for my 28 week appt.

They weren't so from about 27 weeks I started calling and calling and calling... leaving messages on their answer phone with no return. Eventually when they did get back to me I was given an appt at 32 weeks which I couldn't make as I ended up getting a nasty viral/chest infection. I called in the morning and cancelled the afternoon appt but did get a call from the midwife later on that day wanting to know why I hadn't turned up and basically got 'told off' for not seeing them more frequently! She was pretty unpleasant and didn't seem to understand that I was actually pretty unwell.

So now I have spent the last week calling and finally had a call back from a rather unpleasant lady/midwife who arranged an appt for me on Sat and proceeded to tell me off and want to know why they haven't seen me since 18 weeks. I am seeing a consultant regularly so I am being monitored re: blood pressure etc. I explained this but she wasn't haven't any of it. She told me that having not seen them means I have missed out on having my 'second set of bloods done' and that this is very important and should have been down at 28 weeks and now 'she doesn't know what the consequences will be'. She also got quite arsey and told me I was due in five weeks as if I didn't know.

Does anyone know what these bloods are for? Part of me feels like telling them to get lost as I see a great consultant and his midwife team at the local hospital and my pregnancy seems fine.

I just get irritated when I'm told to get in touch with my midwife if I have any problems etc when they seem so uncontactable and distant. If I have a problem I have to go to my GP and then be referred to the hospital. The first appt was great but I could see how busy they were, constantly fielding calls and so on, all the same I feel that if I was just having midwife care I would be really left out in the cold. I feel a bit let down and have no one I can really ask questions as my consultant, although good, is quite distant and impersonal when I seem him in his clinic and he has lots of other people to see.

AIBU or expecting too much? Is the idea of continuity of care and getting to know your midwife an out-dated concept?

Just a quick post cos I am off to school.

The 28 week bloods are when they look at your Hb count (red blood cell) to check your levels. They need to know if you are aneamic.

I am not sure what else but probably looking at blood sugar as well.

YANBU by the way.

Tis rubbish. I have just had my booking in bloods and I am nearly 23 weeks.

At 28 weeks you should also get your sugar analysis bloods done to rule out gestational diabetes.
But no, midwifery care is not great nowdays, they have too many women to see and not enough time.
With DC4 nearly 2 yrs ago, I complained & refused to see my midwife anymore. Was a waste of my time and hers, she forgot to make my referal to Ante & PND team so I got in an awfull mess before I saw anyone for help. And she kept telling me baby was breech (which she was, felt very weird after 3 norms) then writing cephalic in my notes! Good job I wasn't admitted as an emergency, they'd have been expecting the wrong end out first!
I've agreed to see her again for DC5 (Due May) but asked docs to do my referal and will mostly see hosp midwives. Hopefully will only have to see her once till after baby is born.

Sorry, YANBU by the way, was to busy having my own rant.

I only ever got blood samples taken at my booking appointment, so don't think that a sample at 28 weeks is necessarily the norm. However, they may take them if you were, say, showing signs of being anaemic. The only things I ever got checked were urine samples, blood pressure and quick check of the bump to ensure the baby was growing properly.

Seems community midwives are a bit slapdash as a rule. I've not seen the same one twice, they either lost or managed to forget to do my anaemia test (took the blood, just didn't do anything with it...) and then had the cheek to ask me in an accusing manner what had happened to it, and are just vague as vague can be over any question I ask (not particularly difficult ones I think, about stuff you'd expect them to know, like roughly how long it takes to get an epidural under normal circs). And have also managed to write the wrong thing in my notes over some symptoms I reported- I was quite, quite clear over what they were, they simply ignored what I said!

I now ignore most of what they tell me, on the grounds that they aren't going to be delivering my baby anyway.

Thanks everyone, that is helpful. I've already had it established that I'm anaemic. In fact I went to the docs and told them I thought I was and they did a test to confirm it. I have also had my GDD test as I pushed for one. Seems that I am fine though.

I've been in and out of hospitals and medical care for the last four years so am quite used to chasing up appointments and taking the initiative but still annoyed I have to do this with the midwife team. What about other women who are not used to having to act this way?

Then I get TOLD OFF...
GRR!

I do see the midwives in the consultant's antenatal clinic and they do tend to treat you like you are an idiot.

I was sent for a blood test by them as doc requested it (because i couldn't get hold of comm midwives) then when the results came back, they just confirmed my blood type which is not what the doc was looking for. I was then asked repeatedly where my results were by the midwives?! I asked for another blood test and was then told in front of a roomful of pregnant women that 'your blood type doesn't change dear... it stays the same your whole life' (laughter)

It's tricky because they are so busy all the time and I appreciate that, but it does mean they can also be a bit slapdash.

I am also aware that there some excellent midwives out there as well.

So yes, they can be

My midwives have all been really lovely. They just seem really unorganised and too busy to really listen.

My last midwife was very sweet. She did however cry during my booking in appointment when I told her about DD. I appreciated the sympathy but it was a bit disconcerting. She also spent a whole appt talking to her grown up son who called her about his child's vaccination.

But she did do bloods.

She has left now and you get seen by the mws and then told to 'pop to the hospital or clinic to get your tests done'. Popping involves spending hours waiting in a busy waiting room with nowhere to sit and unable to go for a pee without missing your turn.

I have a big problem with hosptials and clinics. I get panic attacks and become incredibly anxious. This is due to DD's illness and all that crappy stuff. I tried to explain that to the mws and they sort of nodded and smiled. I realise now they thought I was saying I didnt like needles and got a bit upset if I had to have an injection.

It took me quite a lot of effort to explain just how serious the problem was (PTSD). It was embarrassing and made me very uncomfortable.

But in the end they did the bloods and were very sweet about it.

My appt was at 9am this morning. I got seen at 9.50 which was annoying as I had an appt with one of my service users at 10.30 and I was late.

But TBH I wasnt suprised. Its always been like that.