Not happy with post birth check up.

[1stmumma]

Hi mums,

I had my 6 week check up for me and baby today and I'm getting the feeling it wasn't done properly. She's not a great GP to start with but I thought more questions and check s would be done.
She asked if it was my first baby, 3 times!, checked my blood pressure and asked if my mood was low and that was it. She didn't want to check my tummy or csection scar is this normal?? I'd have liked more.

My little boys check was more lengthy, however she got out a checklist that she obviously printed off just before I arrived, and the speed she took to get through it was quite worrying. She did the usual, eye checks but no ear check?? Then she got me to weigh him myself. Oh and she asked me if he had any red or unusual marks on him!!

Is this a bad check up or am I being picky here? I love the NHS, I praise them ALOT but this just didn't seem right to me.

Tia x

It doesn’t sound great, but my check up didn’t involve much more than that either. But still, your GP doesn’t sound very competent, which in a more serious scenario than a routine check up wouldn’t be ideal.

My check up was pretty much the same. A quick "how are you?" and that's the mother's check done... and then weight, length, listened to chest of baby, possibly eyes & ears too

Same for us; didn't check anything other than my BP. baby wasn't even weighed

Sadly sounds pretty standard. GPs aren't commissioned to do postnatal check ups any more. I think if you have specific concerns then it would be best to book another appointment to discuss.

Appointment letters here specifically state that the check is for baby not mum and if you feel you need a check up make a separate appointment of speak to hv. You can't book postnatal appointments at all, it doesn't get through triage as you don't need to see a gp just because you're had a baby.

So I think it's pretty poor but also standard.

Sounds normal. It's a check for the baby not you. Just make your own appt if you want to be checked over.

If you have concerns about your c-section scar or other aspects of your health, make an appointment with a different GP and discuss it there.

If the whole surgery is a bit rubbish, change. You'll likely be going to the GPs a number of times with a baby/young child and you need to feel confident in their medical care.

That is rubbish really. At mine I got told I had to switch doctors as I had moved. I then got informed how traumatic my birth was and he didn't normally do these appointments, what did I want to know?!

Mine seemed to have googled the maternal 6 week check just before I came in which was reassuring.....

There’s a full neonatal check that the doctor needs to do on the baby. It’s the same check that would have been done prior to your discharge in hospital. This includes eyes, hips, heart/chest, reflexes and tone. It doesn’t include ears.
Same as above re: maternal check. I think nowadays it’s more if you have a problem make an appointment. Unless you had a particularly traumatic delivery (physical trauma 3/4th degree year for example) then your follow up should be in the hospital with a gynaecologist

My doctors surgery don't even do an appointment with the gp postnatally for mums, baby has the usual checks with the doctor and mums just get a 2 minute appointment with the nurse who tries to offer contraception and in my case tried to give me advice on quitting smoking even though I've never smoked in my life! Total waste of time..

My doctors surgery don't even do an appointment with the gp postnatally for mums, baby has the usual checks with the doctor and mums just get a 2 minute appointment with the nurse who tries to offer contraception and in my case tried to give me advice on quitting smoking even though I've never smoked in my life! Total waste of time..

Completely normal; it’s a check for your baby, not you.

My postnatal check was quick - weight, height, how you feeling? and a quick chat about contraception.

Doctor checked baby's eyes, heart and legs/hips.
Didn't do any measurements as HV had done them the week before.

They do the hearing test at the hospital here on the day baby is born.
Were your baby's not checked in hospital?

If you wanted her to check you're healing properly or whatever, why didn't you just ask?

Mine checked way less than that. She looked at my scar and poked my tummy - it was clearly described as a check up for both of us - asked me about contraception, how she’s fed, looked at her eyes and lifted her up once. No weighing or measuring, barely anything at all. It’s meant to be a half hour appointment and including DD doing a mega poo explosion and the resulting clean up we were out in 10 minutes.

But I knew she wasn’t great as I’d seen her a week before about my scar being infected and she’d prescribed me the one ABs and turfed me out the door in 4 minutes that time.

We’re in a tiny village and have to go to this surgery as it’s in the next village over so no choice. The nurses are fine and jabs all went okay but the doctors suck.