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Childbirth

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

Dr Lorin Lakasing vs Dr Etienne Horner: London, Lindo Wing

11 replies

Happychick35 · 06/09/2013 18:53

Hi everyone ,

I am new to mumsnet. And I am sorry for raising the topic again, but it is such a difficult choice. For personal reasons we decided to go private with this pregnancy ( very hard time to conceive and it is a miracle afer every doctor we saw said no it is never going to happen). So having called around the mumsnet big hitters , the choice is limed to the two doctors Dr Lakasing and Dr Horner. I would be very grateful for any experience with both. Both have a good vibe on mumsnet. So the choice is hard and I would appreciate any feedback. Thank you

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fgr · 06/09/2013 19:48

If you do an archive search I am sure you will find some feedback of both doctors. If not go with your gut feeling and if necessary have another chat with them about what you are hoping to achieve regarding care and the birth. Also think about whether you are comfortable with their bedside manner ie do you want no nonsense or more empathetic care. If you are set on the Lindo Wing I can highly recommend Guy Thorpe Beeston but cannot comment on your choices.

Happychick35 · 07/09/2013 20:46

Thank you FGR, it is a really good advice. I did do search on archives and both have good feedback, I was just hoping someone had more recent experience. There is a bit more about Dr Lakasing as she works together with Dr Murphy, one of mumsnet favorites. Dr Horner works in the same team as Miskry and Beeston, they back up each other, which is quite reassuring. Unfortunately Dr Beeston is not available around my due date. All the popular doctors get booked up quite quickly , which was a bit of a surprise for me. We were on 12 weeks wait before making any decisions. I met with both, Dr Lakasing seems very confident and thorough, but listens a bit less, while Dr Horner seems to be more of empathetic type of person. And I do need hand holding and a lot of reassurance through the pregnancy.

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fgr · 07/09/2013 21:16

It does sound like Dr Horner would be the best choice if you need handholding. He does actually practise at the same clinic as my own ob but she only works at the Portland. Guy did my scans at UDS which is a few doors down from their clinic and I found him great and chances are he will perform yours. A good friend had Guy for her deliveries and had to book him as soon as the line showed as did I. Given your history I would go for him as medically they are probably on par with each but like you said you need empathy so go for the kindest person. Congratuations, get your doctor sorted and enjoy your pregnancy xxxx

TakingTheStairs · 11/09/2013 17:18

I met with Etienne Horner when deciding which Consultant to go with. He was really very lovely. Very reassuring and calming.
But what put me off was his secretary. She wasn't very clear with information and I thought that if I was having a worry or a concern and was calling while upset, I wouldn't have had faith in her to put me through to him or deal with it as urgently as I would like.
BUT he will the one delivering your child and he is the one that matters.

It was £250 for an initial consultation with him, if you can, maybe you should go and meet both Consultants and see who you feel most comfortable with?

Happychick35 · 17/09/2013 18:35

Thank you both for your replies!!! I was on a little break and completely cut off from the internet.

FGR , thank you for your warm wishes, we did book with Horner, although I am still a bit hesitant whether it is the right decision. My husband likes Horner, but he is biased as my hubby is French and much more chilled than me :-) As Taking the Stairs rightly said his secretary is a nightmare. She never calls back, you have to chase her, information is confusing, etc. Part of the problem I think is that she is a secretary to three more doctors in Lindo Wing, but on the other hand having called around I have seen only one very well organised practice, that is Dr Murphy and Dr Lakasing, there is midwife on call, their secretary even though a bit abrupt, always calls back within 2 hours, clear with information, etc. Otherwise from my experience with different doctors good secretary is a rare find. I had to deal with mistakes in letters, prescriptions, so not sure how much this problem should affect the decision. It is indeed Horner, who delivers the baby. Although I would not want my records to be messed up or not being able to get prescription quickly etc.
TakingTheStairs, I did meet with both and level of organisation between Lakasing and Horner office is not comparable, the only reservation I had about her, that she does not listen. She is very thorough, very knowledgeable, but on my journey with infertility I learned the hard way that doctors are not always right, you need to do a lot of your own research and you usually get slightly better results with those who are open to different opinions, rather than dismissive straight away. By the way I met with Miskry as well, and we just did not click. Can I ask you who did you book with at the end ?

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TakingTheStairs · 17/09/2013 23:29

I'm glad you've gone for Mr Horner, he was so nice.
I went with Claire Mellon in the end. She is wonderful. Approachable and friendly but absolutely someone you could trust in a crisis. No question is a silly question. Her secretary is a dream too. Lovely friendly and has all the knowledge. When I met Claire first I was about 7 wks pregnant and when she realised how close I worked to her office and that it was my first child, she offered me the chance to pop into her office every week until I reached 12 wks to have a quick scan so I could see how the baby was growing. No extra cost either!
She has an 11 week waiting list for new patients at the moment I believe which is unfortunate otherwise I'd highly recommend her.

fgr · 18/09/2013 12:57

I am so glad that you have sorted out your ob. You should get his mobile and or email so you should not have to go through his secretary too much. I just used to book my appointments with my ob during antenatal checks and email her if I wanted an extra appointment as her secretary although pleasant was a bit dippy. If you are having any doubts though see some,more doctors as it is a big financial committment and you are seeing a lot of this person.

Happychick35 · 18/09/2013 18:51

TakingTheStairs, Claire Melon does sound amazing! I will definitely keep the name in mind. The only downside for me is that she is in Portland. We debated Portland vs Lindo and settled on Lindo as I would like to have a back up of NHS hospital and if something goes wrong between 24 weeks and 30 Portland hospital would not even accept you and your doctor can't see you at his/her respective NHS post, so you have to go to the NHS hospital and pray that the consultant on duty is a good one, what for me was a big worry. Interestingly all the consultants I have seen agreed with me on that and said yes Lindo is better from emergencies perspective, plus Lindo does let you through the door at 24 weeks if you have a problem and call your doctor straight away..., while a few different midwifes and manager at Portland told me no, you have to go to NHS if you go in labour at this stage or have serious complications. You can come to us from 30 weeks only... So I have seen now pretty much all the obs of Lindo , who had a good vibe on mumsnet and were available around my due date. I was under other consultant for 1st trimester who was handling my other issues , but he only does private birth in Portland and we had couple of "misunderstandings" along the way.
FGR I discussed with Horner how do I access him and he gave his email address , saying if it is not urgent urgent I should expect response within 24 hours, more urgent by end of the day the latest, emergency I call Lindo midwifes and go there and he will be on his way. So that sounds reassuring. A colleague of my husband had a good experience with Horner as well.
Thank you both for your support in making a decision ! It is a big a commitment and such a difficult choice! I have my next appointment with Horner next Monday, if I still feel a bit hesitant might do some more shopping around. TakingTheStairs best of luck in pregnancy!

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TakingTheStairs · 18/09/2013 20:21

You're right about the emergencies, I've been lucky enough to have been blessed with a straightforward low risk pregnancy so I wasn't too worried.
Having said that, I freaked about something two weeks ago and called the Portland and they told me to go to an Nhs hospital to be checked. I didn't know where to go so called Claire's secretary to ask where I should go and she said to come straight to Claire and she would check me and then if necessary tell me where to go. I got a taxi to her clinic and they were waiting for me, saw me with zero wait time and scanned me immediately. All was well!

Best of luck with your pregnancy too xx

Celine123a · 26/10/2021 15:04

Hello!

Could you please let me know how your experience with Horner was :)
Did you have a vaginal or C-section? if C-section, was your scar small/neat?

Thank you so much!

Aach60 · 21/11/2021 18:46

Hi, really wanted some information on how your experience with Dr Horner was, did you have a normal delivery or c section?

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