Uchl / Elizabeth Garrett - recent experiences?

[Izniz]

Hi all! About four days away from due date and just really curious to see if anyone had any good or bad experiences recently labouring at Ucl. I will be in the labour ward, but any tips / experiences / advice re the hospital would be great. We never got round to doing the tour, which is a real shame as I dont know what to expect at all!

No experience yet as im still about 7 weeks away but following as I'd also like to know any experiences. Booked into the birth Centre :)

Hi all. Never got a response to this, so I thought i would answer the question in case anyone is interested in future.

Uchl was generally amazing! As with all hospitals there were really good and less good parts, but overall we felt very taken care of, supported and there was no doubt about the expertise of the team at the hospital - they were top of their game.

In terms of background, my delivery was in the labour ward.

Antenatal care -

• very experienced midwives, very supportive of your personal preferences
• no continuity of care though (you will likely see a different midwife at each visit)
• administration runs smoothly (appointments are timely etc), advice was always spot on
• telephone lines are terrible, if being able to contact your hospital is important to you please do understand that this will likely not be possible. The email helpline does not get responded to and when I was in labour it took us over an hour to be put through to a midwife in triage by phone.

Triage

• our experience with triage was a bit tainted by the fact that we couldnt get hold of them when I went into labour as indicated above. This is a busy london hospital and they are the gatekeepers, I think in our case they made the wrong call sending us home when I was in early labour and the incorrect advice was given - however overall I think it is a good team. When i had reduced movements earlier in my pregnancy, I was able to get hold of them, they saw me promptly and I felt very reassured. So perhaps a bit hit and miss....

Labour ward

• very experienced team, responsive and kind. I had some blood loss during labour and we needed to push the emergency button about three times at various intervals. It was amazing how quickly the room filled with people and how well prepared they were to deal with the issue.
• facilities were lovely, clean and spacious. I didnt have the time, but there was a pool, birthing ball, birthing stool, chair for partner, ensuite bathroom.

Post labour ward

• very pleasant, smaller wards with about four beds in each ward. Curtain gives you great privacy, there is a bed and a chair for your partner. Relatively spacious. You need to walk down the hall to use the bathroom.
• Noisy but in an acceptable way, you can only hear the three other people in your ward and my ward was very considerate. I could only hear quiet chatting, babies crying (obviously) and the occasional ringing of the bell for the midwives to assist.
• midwives were very busy on this ward, I was in for two nights so i could tell that quiet times they were able to sit and talk through questions etc and then in busy times they really prioritise the proper medical care only (checking temperature, blood pressure, dispensing medicine etc). I think this is fair and I wasnt negatively effected by it.
• breastfeeding support was a bit hit and miss i thought. They clearly have some lovely, knowledgeable staff and when you pin one down its magic. But they’re busy and there isnt really a scheduled time to help you with this aspect, which I could tell was something everyone on my ward needed help with.
• supplies were a bit funny... I had lost a lot of blood during labour and was still bleeding heavily when i got to the ward, but was told they dont use bed protectors on that ward and i just needed to change my pad regularly. Of course i did etc, but i wanted the comfort of having a lining on the bed as I had lost over a liter of blood and was still bleeding very heavily. So hubby went out to get some, which is fine - but I thought a bit strange.

Overall I would definitely have my next baby at uchl as well, they were brilliant. The main draw for me is the expertise and attitude of their staff, for the most part they were just incredibly accommodating and supportive. The worst part is the communication when you’re not at the hospital (telephone and email lines).