Can you pay for a private post-natal room at Kings College

[otchayaniye]

My midwife says no, you have to buy the package, but friends who have been there say yes.

Not sure who to contact.

I have healthcare (Cigna) but I don't think it covers anything maternity based unless it's for a medical reason (and this is my preference over vbac as my rupture risk is higher due to previous surgery)

Not being precious (ok, I am) but have heard bad stories about post-natal care at Kings (can't fault their ante-natal care though) and am booked for a planned section there in two weeks.

I delivered there last year and also asked about this prior to the birth, but was advised as you were that you have to have whole private packagr as they have a separate private wings.
The post ward I was on did have a separate room, which I assume they use for mothers whose babies are in NICU etc.

Oh and fwiw, the post natal care was pretty good apart from me not getting the requested skin to skin with ds after the birth, think that might have just been the circumstances (forceps, pph), and no food despite not having eaten in 2 days and severe vomiting through labour.
Lovely HCA helped me shower. Lots of bf support.
It is busy though, and I didn't get any sleep ( taking blood from at 2am after i finally got to sleep, then coming back to repeat 2 hrs later as it had clotted wouldn't mind but it took 2 mws and 2 drs to get the blood from me in the first place as was so anaemic lol.

When I asked in 2008 I was told actually quite nastily by a midwife that as I had nothing wrong with my baby, there was no way I would get a private room. All I did was ask politely - there was no problem at Queen Elizabeth where I'd had DC1 with paying a small fee for one, so I thought it was a reasonable question!

I had an EMCS and the postnatal ward was not great. Under-resourced and loud and hot. Most of the midwives were really, really lovely, but as always it's the unpleasant one or two that you end up remembering and there were other instances of poor care that were entirely down to the midwife in question.

Have had 2 babies at Kings. Both ELCS (which were great). First one I ended up in ante-natal ward as post-natal was full and it was okish - at least it was quiet, one MW was horrid though. Second (fortnight ago) I was in high dependency unit at first (complications not due to any ante or post-natal care) which was fine and then later on post-natal ward - where the MW at night has horrible and unhelpful to everyone. One good thing though is that your partner can now stay with you for the first night - though they have to sleep in a chair.

Many thanks, and congratulations, I hope you're both well now.

How many nights were you in?