Private vs. NHS in West London

[marissa80]

Hi, My husband and I just started trying for a baby (our first and I'm 30) and I'm really confused about whether or not I should go private (have heard great things about C&W private consultants) or NHS - my GP has recommended Queen Charlotte's birth centre. Private would be a financial stretch for me but I'm terrified of something going wrong during the birth or right after so want to do whatever works best for mum+baby. Any thoughts? Any insight would be greatly appreciated....

I'm also from West London and have had two children. We used a private hospital for the births and I am a real fan. But... if your concern is about 'something going on' then going private offers you nothing over the NHS (and some would argue is more risky). At the big NHS hospitals in London, they have amazing emergency facilities on site and everything you could hope for by way of expertise.

The advantages of private care are nicer facilities, one on one care throughout and e.g. guaranteed epidural if you want one. But it doesn't sound to me like this is your main criteria so I'd save your money.

Sorry - typo. Meant to read 'something going wrong' not 'on'.

Going private will not mean a better outcome for you and the baby, really. Not in any significant way. The same consultants that you see privately will be operating an NHS list, too. The best high risk care and SCBUs in the country are in NHS hospitals.

What private care gives you is convenience (more choice of appointment times), usually better access to your consultant (so you can ring and talk to them within reason, may be able to schedule in last minute appts etc) and, in terms of the birth, a much higher standard of comfort (better room, better food, partner often allowed to stay, probably more help from MWs post-natally).

Don't spend thousands of pounds on private care without thinking through exactly what you are expecting / hoping for for your money, and ensuring that you will get it.

I'm in West London too & i've had 6 babies at Queen Charlottes.... but not in the birth centre part though.

I would agree with Galdem, going private isn't likely to affect the outcome of your labour. If something is going to happen in labour or afterwards, being private won't make any difference imo.

Never been private but i imagine the aftercare would be nice, private room, better food, more time with a midwife (maybe) to help establish breastfeeding etc. Not sure how anti-natal appointment work for private patients. I know that the waiting time to see a midwife can be an hour or so & the same to see your consultant.

Hi, I am booked at C&W Kensington Wing (private). The antenatal care has been great. I was intially going through NHS and was very unhappy with the care (couldn't get to see a consultant till 18 weeks, couldn't get 1st scan til 13 weeks, etc, although i had some high risk factors), so I decided to go privately and have been very pleased thus far. Totally worth the money... If you could manage finances, I would strongly recommend C&W privately.

I absolutely disagree that private doesn't give you a better outcome. Of course it might not but realistically you'll have one on one midwife care, you won't be sharing a midwife with any other mothers, you'll have absolute privacy so no inductions on a ward and any decisions regarding intervention will be made by a consultant not a registrar who knows you and your history and will do the procedure themselves. They are there for you, not to get the baby out by the end of the shift etc etc. I've done both and I'd never go NHS ever again.

Postnatally the private wing is likely to be well staffed so more opportunity for one on one breastfeeding help which may well be the difference between breastfeeding working or not.

Thanks so much for your views and info. I think I am going to go visit C&W, QC and maybe St Mary's private and nhs wings. I'm mostly concerned about the quality of care rather than other luxuries at the moment (although that may change...).
The point about breast feeding support is important as I don't have any family here that will support me with that type of thing when I am home so I need to consider how to get a good start on that in the hospital as I would like to try.

Any key things to consider when I am visiting the hospitals?

You can do a mix of both which might work out for you (and be a bit cheaper). I (for other health reasons) managed to get an NHS 1to1 midwife (who is great) but have still seen a consultant around three/four times (and my care has been discussed in detail as I had a traumatic birth last time). I have also had a number of private scans at the FMC which I cannot recommend highly enough:

www.fetalmedicine.com/fmc/

My GP has also recommended two private lactation consultants who I am going to speak with before the birth in case I would like to be visited by them in hospital.

My DH and I were not sure whether to go private or not but I am actually pleased with the way we have done it, I have liked the freedom of going to see different docs privately just for individual consultations if needed.

As to your stay in hospital, you can always be moved to the private ward post-natally if you decide the NHS ward isn't for you as they usually have room.

I would also second QC's and C&W in West London for the best of both worlds (and being able to move between private and NHS more easily).

I am still hoping I can use the birth centre at QC's (40 weeks today!) as I really like it but it is looking rather unlikely as I will probably end up with an induction now....

I would ask the private wings if they have their own operating theaters or if these are shared with NHS, and then would go see these (just in case you need an emergency c-section), and how many people could be operated at the same time. The worse thing is to wait when you need an emergency treatment and there is a long waiting line + people with elective c-sections... The same goes for an anastethialogist (spelling?). Do make sure that private wings have their own specialists as opposed to sharing ones with NHS (heard horror stories of women waiting for epidurals for hours and then it was too late to have one)... Aiming for a natural birth, but you never know how it goes... Also, ask them how many consultants they have on duty every day at private wings (if you are under midwife care) and need emergency assistance -- it is important to know that you will be treated by an experienced consultant dedicated to private wing rather than some random overworked registrar from NHS... Good luck!

lucy101 makes a v good point re extra scans at fetal medicine centre. I too did this. I am receiving high risk ante natal NHS care at the C&W. I did consider going private but would not have gained anything extra as I am seeing the consultant who I would have wanted privately (Mark Johnson - excellent obst and a really lovely and empathetic person). I can't say what is the quality of care you would get if non high risk.

I would like to get a private room in the Kensington Wing but you can't book these in advance. If I don't get a private room, I am v nervous about being on the NHS post-natal ward. I had my c-sec rescheduled from a Friday to Wednesday so that I avoid weekend cover of staff, which may/may not rely on temp/non-continuous cover of midwives.

I second what others have said - mix NHS with private.

Just to pick up on what summerinthesunshne said earlier.

Private care can give you better access to one-to-one care from a midwife (particularly postnatally) - absolutely. I wouldn't dispute that. Also, you will get to see a named consultant as standard (which you would only get on the NHS if you had a risk/need for Consultant-led care).

I think the point I wanted to make was that, when push comes to shove, if anything goes seriously wrong, there is absolutely no improvement in outcome in private hospitals / wards. I think it is really important to be clear about that before you spend large sums of money.

Very few private hospitals can offer the level of care (by which I mean medical care, not support) to high risk patients that a large NHS teaching hospital like, say, UCLH, can.

I am not anti private care, btw. I just think it is really important to weigh up what it is you are expecting from private cfare against the cost. If you want the very best medical care - a sort of 'extra protection' - if things go very wrong, private care isn't the best solution in my opinion. However, if you want a better level of 'customer service' throughout your pregnancy and birth, then undeniably, if you pay for it, you get a much better level of customer care.

I'm another one who mixed private with NHS - I've had my important scans at the FMC and had a few extra cervical length checks privately too. This has worked out very well for us.

For a long time I was considering a private ELCS (medically required) but in the end we couldn't justify the money given the outcome would not be any different, just the care. The consultant who will deliver my baby I completely trust - he does NHS and private. We don't have a lot of money so for us losing several thousand pounds just for a much much nicer postnatal experience over a few days just didn't seem worth it. Every family is different though.

btw I am having my baby on the NHS at C&W with Nick Wales - lovely man, highly recommended - he does do private. I have heard great things about Queen Charlotte's private ward as well, Prof Bennett is apparently fantastic.

Good post QTPie - a lot of people on mumsnet seem to equate "private care" with "private hospital" when you really can have best-of-both in the private wing of a teaching hospital. As much as I have appreciated my experiences, I would only say it is worth it if you can comfortably afford it. Else you should fight for what you are entitled to under the NHS. I do not think private care, as nice as it is, is worth big financial sacrifices, although never having had a traumatic birth, I suppose that is easy enough to say.

I can't speak highly enough of Dr. Mina Savvidou and staff of the Kensington Wing at the Chelsea & Westminster hospital. I just recently delivered there as a patient. The entire pregnancy I felt well tended to and had no problems getting answers and attention when needed. This was important to me as a first time mum. Dr. Mina and the midwives at KW were brilliant the whole way through. They helped me feel confident and encouraged during what turned out to be a lengthy labor. During delivery, I needed to go to the theater and recovery room at the NHS side of the hospital and the staff was equally as attentive, patient and highly skilled... despite being down 4 workers that particular day.
The aftercare we received at the Kensington Wing was amazing as well. The individual attention made quite a difference. It was even one of the midwives who helped with my delivery and aftercare who caught a medical problem with my daughter that was quickly addressed, despite the discharge papers having already been drawn up. I will forever be indebted to the staff who cared for my little one and made my first delivery a success.

I found Mina Savvidou unprofessional. I would not spend GBP13k on a private birth with a consultant who doesn't even bother to have a CV and whose assistant is rude.

Have to agree with lilly and say that I wasn't too impressed with Savvidou's manner. I am sure she is exceptionally qualified as she trained with Nicolaides. Had my NHS growth scans with her and she never read my notes and always remarked that she never knew why she was scanning me (previous neo-natal death and reduced growth in previous preg). She does not like being questioned, was not reassuring, and I felt like an inconvenience. She was good at pointing out various body parts of the baby but not actually saying much beyond that. Reassurance is what I needed. Perhaps she was having a difficult/stressful period in her life.

Despite this, the care I have received at the C&W has been amazing - can't speak highly enough of Mark Johnson. Was impressed by Zoe Penn - her speciality is more endocrine issues. The MWs are all so lovely - haven't once encountered anyone rude.