Whipps Cross alternatives

[hulahoop7]

I am due to deliver my second baby at Whipps Cross hospital in November. My first baby was born there in 2010 on the maternity ward and care during labour was great. Care after delivery was not that good. I was just left with little one all night and when I called for a midwife once she took half an hour to arrive and didn't really help when she arrived with a grumpy expression on her face.

Consequently I planned a home birth for the second one and have heard great things about WX's new homebirth team, but I am now classed high risk and may not be able to go through with that anymore. Antenatal care also seems more flakey than 2 years ago. I have never seen the same midwife or consultant twice and am ushered out of every appointment so quickly that all the information I have about my pregnancy complications are from my own research.

I was wondering if any of you had given birth at whipps recently and if their aftercare is still poor there. I'd also be interested to find out if Homerton or other neighbouring hospitals tend to do any better on maternity care these days.

I am whipps too, live in walthamstow. It's my first baby and I have to say, the ante natal unit is chaotic. I think there are just too many women passing through. I am going for a homebirth - the 2 midwives who run the homebirth service, Detta and Susan are lovely. They have filled me with confidence and made me excited about giving birth. I only hope I can.
My friend gave birth there recently and couldn't speak highly enough of her experience. She was in for 2 nights I think.
My sister gave birth at Homerton last year and said the aftercare was awful - on a ward surrounded by other women giving birth - I went to visit her and can vouch for that. However she said they couldn't have been better during the birth.

Hope that helps a little bit.
I have had mixed experiences with the community midwives too! Mainly they've been fairly cursory and disinterested. Detta and Susan are like a breath of fresh air. They are on call for 8 days straight each and you can tell the project is a real labour of love for them both.
Maybe I could DM you Detta's number and you could speak to her directly... that's what I did. I am sure if they can make it work for you, they will.

Thanks that helps a lot. Have heard nothing but good things about Detta and an signed up for home birth service already. They will take over care at 36 weeks, but there's a real risk that I won't be allowed to go for a home birth due to problems with my placenta and possible growth restrictions later in pregnancy. Hopefully things will keep on track so that we can have the home birth we planned for. Hope it all goes to plan for you too!

Thanks very much! I'll keep my fingers crossed for you too :)