Anyone given birth at Watford General recently?

[OneBigToDoList]

Hello everyone,

Very early in my first pregnancy and was hoping for opinions on Watford General. I have not heard great things, and I know their rating was recently dropped from 'Good' to 'Needs Improvement'.
From what I've read I know a lot of how well birth goes will be down to luck; who is there on the day, how busy it is, etc, but I also don't want to disregard the issues I've read about and then regret it!

Has anyone given birth there recently, and what was your experience like?

Thank you in advance x

I had a planned c section at Watford in the autumn of last year. While I can’t comment on the labour part I thought my ante natal and post natal care was really good.

The staff that I met were really great and the admin side of scans, appointments etc was well organised.

I went in a few times for monitoring and the midwives never made me feel like I was wasting their time and were really kind despite being busy.

I stayed for two nights after my c section. The first night I received excellent support from the midwives and nursery nurses. On the second night I was warned that they were short of staff, I still got the support I needed but it was NHS no frills.

They have student midwives working during the day who were very helpful.

I heard that the birthing centre was closed while I was there due to lack of staff and everyone had to give birth on the labour ward so this may have impacted their rating. I would definitely ask your midwife if this is still the case.

Hi @chickenmug thanks so much for taking the time to reply, I'll definitely ask my midwife at my next appointment. It's our closest hospital by far so really want to give it a fair chance. Congratulations on your little one x

@OneBigToDoList Im in the same boat! We are moving to Hemel Hempstead and Watford looks like closest option. I’m a bit worried as I haven’t read great things either. Has your mind been put at ease at all? I was a little shocked they only had two birthing pools too which seems like very little! Xx

Hi @sldawson congratulations! I still haven't managed to speak to anyone who gave birth there recently. I have my 16wk midwife appointment (not at Watford) next week and am planning to ask them about it then, I'll let you know what they say! I didn't know that about the birthing pools, that's a worry! x

@OneBigToDoList I watched their hospital tour video online and they touch on the Alexandra suite which is the midwife led bit. They said only two pools which is a bit of a worry! This is my second so I know how long labour can go on (from the first time round!) so can’t imagine the likelihood of pool availablility being too high! I’m also quite worried about the recent rating they had. I’ve looked into other hospitals close ish but sadly they all seem a bit like for like! Not sure if you would ever consider a home birth but I’ve been considering that as a plan B! Not sure though if Watford do them…! X

Ah thanks @Overtherainbow130 I'll have to watch that! I'm quite worried about what I've heard RE understaffing so having a dedicated midwife at home would be amazing, but it's my first baby so not considering a home birth this time. I will let you all know what the midwife says, she's not based at the hospital so I'm hoping she'll give me her honest opinion! x

Probably not as recent as you'd like but I had my 2 there last one in 2019 and found the care very good. I also had a hysterectomy there in January and although they were really busy the care I received was fantastic, the gynaecology consultants, doctors and nurses were really really good! Couldn't fault them.

Hi all, for anyone who would like to know, I had my midwife appointment and she gave me a more honest opinion than I was expecting.

She said that they had a lot of staffing issues during the pandemic and had to close the midwife led unit. That is now back open and their student midwives are qualified now. They also have a new Director of Midwifery who she thinks will shake things up a lot.
She also said they do have quite a young/junior workforce, but always with Senior Midwives supervising. Also the labour ward is quite tired looking, but the midwives are a lovely bunch which in her opinion outweighed the 'look' of the ward.

She also said to shop around! Lister and Luton were her personal recommendations. Obviously this is just one opinion so wouldn't want anyone to make a decision either way based on her info, but thought it may help to hear another opinion - I found it more useful than I was expecting to ask the midwife too, and she understood my concerns.🙂 x

Thanks shivbo2014, :)

If I were you, I'd ask what level their maternity and neonatal facilities are - they have a higher level at Luton, such as a neonatal intensive care unit, I believe.

www.westhertshospitals.nhs.uk/maternity/choosingus/facilities.asp

www.bedfordshirehospitals.nhs.uk/our-services/maternity-2/choosing-to-have-your-baby-at-the-ld/

Hi @OneBigToDoList . Can I ask what hospital did you end up going for? And what was your experience? I'm due to deliver the baby at Watford and I'm a first time mum, so I just thought I'd ask :) x

Hi @DFBM, congratulations!

I ended up going to Watford and had a relatively good experience.

I ended up needing to be induced so I can’t comment on what it’s like if you arrive to the hospital in labour, but I found the midwives and doctors to be kind, and they took all potential issues with baby very seriously. Surgery team were amazing. We had a three day stay on the postnatal ward after and it was fine! We got a lot of help with breastfeeding too, during and after our stay. (If you’re hoping to bf make sure they know and ask for help whenever you need it)

The negatives - it is understaffed, there’s no denying it, but I think sadly this is a nationwide issue. The midwives do their best but just be sure to ask for help/updates and don’t feel bad doing so. The birthing centre was also closed when I was there due to staffing issues, so if you’re hoping to use it I would check with your midwife. I will say, I was terrified of the labour ward but again it was fine, they can dim the lights and although we didn’t have fairy lights and the like I’m sure they would’ve changed the room if we’d asked.
We had a bad nightshift midwife who I wish I’d asked to change now, so be aware you can do that! Tell your birthing partner too. But the midwife we had after was amazing, as were all the students we met.

Sorry, reading this back now it doesn’t seem helpful! But speaking to friends on my NCT group I think my experience was pretty standard. Feel free to message me if you want to know anything more specific! All the best x

Hello! Did you decide to stick with Watford? I’m weighing up between Watford and QE2 (Lister). Would be good to know what you thought!

@Lablady123 and @OneBigToDoList did either of you end up going to Watford? Our NCT midwife has said the birthing pools are never available due to staffing… wondering whether to swap hospitals but I know it’s not a given that we will have a birthing pool elsewhere. Also been to the MDAU at Watford and the staff are so kind

Hi @Limmers14 congratulations! I did, I replied to someone above with more detail, let me know if you can't see it, would be happy to DM it.
My experience was over 3 years ago now, so I'm not sure how helpful this is, but there were also staffing issues at the time. I was induced so couldn't use the birthing pool, but the Birth Centre was closed across the whole month my NCT group gave birth. I will say that the 'normal' rooms were fine, I was suprised how cosy they could feel. Let me know if you have specific questions and I'll do my best to answer x