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Childbirth

Share experiences and get support around labour, birth and recovery.

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Original poster

North London - which hospital? Advice please

18 replies

coveredinflour · 28/04/2012 14:53

Hello,

I' nearly 6 weeks with my first pregnancy. Live in NW London and have an appointment with the GP to tell them I'm pg on Wednesday.

I understand I can choose where my ante-natal care happens, and so I'm wondering which hospital would be best. I live nearish to St Mary's, Royal Free and UCH but there may be others. I guess it's easier to choose where I want to give birth (although it is super early I know) and then go there for all scans etc (or if I mc of course, though fingers crossed I don't).

I've heard bad things about Royal Free so at the moment am thinking about UCH but really not sure. Does anyone have any advice or experiences you could share?

I would like to go for a midwife-led birthing unit rather than labour ward if possible (would at least like to try the natural approach, but within reach of an epidural and surgical theatre just in case so would prefer somewhere they have both).

Thank you!

Ps - accidentally posted this in ante-natal choices forum so apologies for double post!

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bettyspaghetti33 · 28/04/2012 15:33

Hi coveredinflour congratulations on your pregnancy :)

Its never too early to start choosing and you can ask to visit the hospitals to see what you think. You could also try contacting a local doula to ask.

From personal experience with having my first baby at St Mary's I think the antenatal care there is diabolical, very overcrowded place with some pretty rubbish midwives. My experience of labour there was also very bad, I was pressured into having pain relief and ended up with an EMCS due to their incompetance. Of course, everyone's experience is different and you may get some people tell you some fantastic things about St Mary's, I can only talk from my own perspective. Having said that a friend of mine has just had twins there by CS and was asked to leave just 2 hours after her op, another friend said the postnatal care there was so bad that she and 5 other mothers walked out of the postnatal ward without even being discharged because they felt so disgusted.

Don't forget you are entitled to choose any hospital you wish. I'm am now pregnant with my second and am with the Chelsea and Westminster. It is a bit further away but the care is so much better and they have a 1-2-1 midwife policy when you go into labour.

I hope you find a hospital you will feel confident with and best of luck :)

Yaya70 · 28/04/2012 21:04

I had all my antenatal care and gave birth at UCH. The antenatal care was just amazing (I had a very difficult pregnancy with lots of scans and referral to the Fetal Medicine Unit). You will probably see a different midwife for most of your appointments and they are usually running late, but I imagine that's the same for many of the big London hospitals.

I wanted to give birth in the birth centre but was induced at 41+4 so that wasn't an option. It was a difficult birth, which ended in an emergency caesarean, but I can't fault the care I received from the midwives and doctors.

For a midwife-led birth, the Whittington (Archway) has a really good reputation. They have a brand new birth centre there and all the mums I've come across that gave birth there had a wonderful experience.

Original poster

coveredinflour · 28/04/2012 23:02

Thank you both very much. I hadn't considered the Whittington or Chelsea and Westminster. I'll also look up a doula! Can you pick anywhere in London do you know?

Do you think it matters if I move halfway through the pg if I don't like where I start off?

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Original poster

coveredinflour · 28/04/2012 23:04

Sorry, betty just re-read and realised you answered my question about choosing anywhere! Thanks! :)

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schroedingersdodo · 28/04/2012 23:21

I've had a bad experience with DS at the royal free so for DC2 I booked at the Whittington. Didn't like the building or the first few appointments so will change to uch.
The thing about having a naice birth centre and not so nice labour and post natal ward is that you can't be sure you won't need the labour ward.

hellymelly · 28/04/2012 23:40

My experience was like yaya's, but dd2 is nearly five so things may have changed. I felt my ante-natal care was really very good at UCH. The royal free had a terrible reputation and I heard nothing but bad things about it from other mothers when i was in London.My Hampstead friend moved home to her parents to avoid going there . However there was a consultant on here for a while who seemed to be really trying to change things so it may have got better (or not).

schroedingersdodo · 29/04/2012 01:29

No, it didn't. This consultant was around here before I gave birth to DS in 2010, and it was still crap.

Longdistance · 29/04/2012 01:41

I hate tha Royal Free. Not pg related, but when my mum had her op 4 liver cancer she contracted MRSA

laughingGnomette · 29/04/2012 08:33

I'm having my baby at the Whittington (very pleased with the care I've had so far, I'm now 40+1).
A few weeks ago I asked one of the midwives what would happen in the scenario where the labour wards were full/closed when I went into labour, would I more likely be transferred to the Royal Free or UCH? She frowned and said that they'd definitely opt for the UCH as first choice!

Bedat10 · 29/04/2012 08:41

I had my first dc at the royal free in 2009. The maternity care/ward certainly wasnt fabulous, but it wasn't far off what I expected. Nothing to compare it to, but it was fine. My little one had to go back in at a couple of days old though to the neonatal unit at royal free, and that was amazing, staff were brilliant and care was excellent. We've moved since so I'll be having my next baby elsewhere but if we still lived nearby, I'd go back to the royal free. Parking can be an issue though (although that might be even worse at uch?). Congrats on the pregnancy!

Original poster

coveredinflour · 29/04/2012 14:14

Thank you! I'm now thinking perhaps the Whittingtin, though I live in Kilburn so it's not that easy to get to by public transport...

Such a hard decision!

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tethersend · 29/04/2012 14:21

The C11 bus goes from Westbere road/W Hampstead straight to The Whittington if that helps at all...

I have had one baby at UCH and am about to have another there. They are brilliant, although I had an elcs and am having another, so can't tell you what the birthing unit is like.

LouYK · 29/04/2012 18:15

I had my second baby at UCH 9 weeks ago and cannot fault them for birth. I ended up having an emergency cs and everyone i came into contact with was amazing. I cannot really comment on ante natal care as i employed an independent mw to visit me at home but the few appts i went to there were fine, after the long wait.
I have heard that an ex midwife from st john and elizabeth has taken over the birth unit at royal free, so it may have improved.
Congratulations and good luck!

LouYK · 29/04/2012 19:44

Oh yes, i heard that the birth centre at whittington is very good but should you need to transfer to labour ward (eg for epidural), its not so great. But i was told this 10 months ago so it may have improved.

Yaya70 · 29/04/2012 19:58

Btw, one of the reasons I chose UCH was because you get the results of nuchal plus blood tests on the day of your 12-week scan. (This was important for me given that I'm an older mum.) I think at many other hospitals you have to wait a week or two after your scan to receive the results of your screening test.

tiggersreturn · 29/04/2012 23:49

I've had 3 at st mary's (ds and dts) with a mc at UCH in between. I found UCH's system catastrophic as I slipped through it at every point and it was just a disaster waiting to happen. Luckily the worst that happened to me was just being called every month for 3 months after erpc to ask why I wasn't going to antenatal appointments.

I found st mary's had substantially improved between ds' birth in 2007 and the dts in aug 2011 particularly post-natally. The attitude there had switched from "you are a nuisance" to "how can we help you" although that may have had something to do with me knowing how to use the system better. Still some bad night mws but the day ones were good and the labour ones were fine.

Original poster

coveredinflour · 04/05/2012 08:17

Thank you! I'm now thinking perhaps the Whittingtin, though I live in Kilburn so it's not that easy to get to by public transport...

Such a hard decision!

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Daya · 04/05/2012 11:30

I am 36 weeks and have had all my ante-natal care at the Whittington. Has all being really good, have seen two consultant obstetricians there who have both being really respectful and kind.

Midwives nice enough, very good acupuncture clinic attached to the maternity dept which has been really helpful to me as had SPD at around 20 weeks. Would definitely recommend it.

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