Queen Charlotte's or Kingston?

[bunnie]

I'm expecting with my second child - hurrah! I am going for my booking in appointment next week but cannot decide whether I should choose Kingston or Queen Charlotte's for the birth. My first was born by emergency caesarian at Chelsea and Westminster and, although the antenatal, induction and caesarian were great, the post-natal ordeal was the worst experience of my life. I endorse everything that has already been said about this shoddy outfit and crummy staff elsewhere on Mumsnet!! It is likely I will have to have another caesarian, but I am open minded about that. We are marginally closer to Queen Charlotte's, but traffic will always be a problem whether we go there or to Kingston. I'd really appreciate any advice!! I suppose anywhere that has proper staff with a bit of patience, kindly doctors and edible food (chips and bread for breastfeeding mothers at Chelsea and Westminster!? I ask you!!) - will fit the bill. Thanks everyone!

i had the chance to choose from hammersmith h. or queen charlotte and i chose hammersmith and i`ve regretted ever since all the other mums that went to q.charlotte told me it was excellent

Hi Bunnie, sounds like you live very close to me! Agree with you about the horror that is C&W - never again. Friends have just given birth at both Kingston and Queen C's - and both were very happy. I suppose the plus side of Queen C's is that it was - in it's old guise - a specialist maternity hospital, but a friend had a very prem baby at Kingston two years ago and they were fantastic. In fact I think their head nurse won some national award for her work. Also, everyone I know who has had a c section at Kingston has been given their own room, always a plus point.

Good luck whatever you choose ... and try to come to the next SW meet up when we get round to organising one!

Hi Bunnie
Queen Charlotte's, without any hesitation. My little girl wasn't born there but I've been told my nurses that when i'm expecting my next they'll get me into Q.Charlotte's becasue they have the best facitlituies etc (my little girl was born with Down Sybdrome and it's translocation Down's which means it's genetic). I've also heard SO many wonderful stories about that hospital.

I'm booked into Queen C. I had my DD at Chelsea and Westminister and I agree about the post natal wards.

So far I have been admitted twice with this pregnancy at Queen C and the staff have been brilliant. Before 24 weeks I'm 16) you are admitted to the Gynocology ward so as yet I have no experience of the antenatal/postnatal ward (they're the same at Queen c). But the ward I was on was fairly quiet and the nurses very very very attentive.

ITs worth noting that Hammersmith Hospital have merged their maternity unit with Queen C and as Hammersmith is a post graduate teaching hospital you tend to get a very high calibre of doctor. No medical students, but qualified doctors who often come from around the world to learn their craft.

So my vote is Queen C!

I had my dd at QC 7 months ago and it was a dream. I had my 1st 2.5 years ago at St.Mary's and it was a nightmare (40 hours labor followed by c-section). With my dd at QC I had a VBAC on the birth centre floor. If you do book at QC and would like to have a VBAC, go and talk to Debi Gould who is the head midwife on the birth centre floor. She is absolutely wonderful and will make everything easy for you. QC was fully renovated 2 years ago and is really wonderful and pretty much everything works and looks nice. And the midwives on the birth centre floor are really nice and always seem to have time to spend with you. After the birth of my dd I got a private room with my own bathroom! My friend had her ds there 2 mo. ago and had a similarly wonderful experience.

Thanks everyone. It's good to have this input and I look forward to more messages! Willow2 - I'm in Kew and have just read the threads about meetings. I've passed Tapestry many times when going to Barnes! Pie - about the medical student thing. When I was in Chelsea and Westminster and under close observation, following my admission as I was pre-eclamptic, it was suggested by some hapless Registrar that a student should be present. "NO" I screamed, I don't want to be observed. Well, I had a bit of dignity left at the time. "ER's on tonight - tell him to go and watch that!" I said - quite spontaneous, I thought, considering the pressure I was under!! Of course, five hours later I relented as I was desperate for the company and my induction was going nowhere .... the poor students were happy to leave me after being in the room for an hour or so. Baby was nowhere to be seen, my blood pressure was still sky high, husband was slumped over stool (another gripe with Hospital - how can anyone sleep on a stool!?) and they were learning nothing at all except my life history ....

I have heard two not so good stories of birth experiences at Queen C - eg was an older mum friend of mine who was left to labour far too long and the baby now has mild cerebal-p. I think it is hard to generalise about hospitals - so much depends on the staff you get on a particular day/night. I had a great birth experience at C&W - I had a long labour but no complications or stitches or anything and had a fab anaesthetist who gave me my epidural. I agree about the post-natal ward at C&W but it is a very busy hospital and its best if they prioritise the labouring women, after all.
Kingston is supposed to be very good and so is Queen Charlottes. I would say think very carefully about how you are going to get there too as negotiating Hammersmith and Shepherds Bush at any time of day can be pretty awful and the car journey when in labour can be agonising. Queen Charlottes is now next to Wormwood Scrubs - not the most picturesque!!!!

my friend is looking for priavte maternity care. Are Kingston and Queen Charlottes private hospitals?

A friend of mine had her baby at QC about two years ago, and ended up with a caesarian - not because the baby was in distress or the midwife thought labour wasn't progressing, but because the consultant had an arbitrary rule that after x hours labour its a caesar. She had a lot of difficulty trying to breast feed, got no help at QC, and gave up. But the worst thing was, they discharged her with no painkillers. Her GP could not believe it. So make sure you get some, bunnie - she was trying to make do with paracetamol for 2-3 days (and no sleep because of the pain) until the GP found out. Not a good start ...

I've booked at QC after having an emergency section at my local hospital 2 years ago. I particularly wanted to avoid a section this time and after a lot of research chose QC due to their active birth facilities. This was mentioned in my referral letter as the reason for my choice.
I have had my booking appointment which was uneventful, but at the recent birth centre tour I was told by a midwife that 'trial of scar' patients were unable to use the active birth centre, and that my particular consultant was very anti-VBAC, and would recommend a second section. (I burst into tears which probably scared the pants off all the first-time mums on the tour).
So, Bunnie if you want a VBAC and you choose QC be aware that you need to have a consultant who is happy with that. I'm in the process of trying to change mine.
QC does seem gorgeous compared to the local hospital where I had ds (do a tour if you haven't decided yet!)

I know you can go private at Queen C's as a friend just has.

A private wing has apparently just been opened at Chelsea & Westminster....

£600 per night at C&W - full package costs about £6K according to my consultant.

I'll be the one on the bog standard post natal ward - yelling please let me out !!

The C&W also have a new active birth ward - which of course I'm not able to use as I'm going for a VBAC. God, its so depressing.

Think I'll just stay at the home until the little mite makes an appearance.

Have just rung QC to try to arrange a tour of Unit. Oh no, (you fool!) you can't have a tour UNTIL you've you've booked to have your baby here! How on earth can I make an informed decision unless I've seen the facilities! I'll just have to rely on my instincts and, of course, you lot!!

Another vote for Queen Charlotte's. Friends raved about it.

Bunnie...if you're really desperate, and assuming I ever want to go back to Queen Charlottes after tomorrows amnio, I have yet to take the tour and I am booked in. You could tag along and pretend that we have known each other for ages. How soon do you have to decide which hospital you want to book into?

I probably won't do the tour until about 2 weeks time.

Just an idea...

bluebear, the no vbac rule on the active birth centre floor is the official rule. Please please contact debi gould the head midwife there. She is super nice and a big proponent of VBAC's. I went around my consultant who also had me in tears (edmonds was his name) and contacted her directly and she did the rest for me, including contacting my consultant and telling him that I wished to try for a vbac on the birth centre floor. I had all the rest of my appointments with the midwives on that floor as I was also having trouble with my gp and didn't want to do the shared care. I had a successful VBAC with debi delivering. As it turned out I had a haemmorage afterwards (nothing to do with having a vbac) and was wisked up to theater on the floor above with no delay or trouble at all. And then, after spending the night on the high risk floor, debi arranged for me to come back down and spend the next couple of nights in a single room on the birth centre floor. Also, they provide a pullout BED (!) for your dh if he wants to spend the night with you. The whole experience was wonderful.

bluebear, the no vbac rule on the active birth centre floor is the official rule. Please please contact debi gould the head midwife there. She is super nice and a big proponent of VBAC's. I went around my consultant who also had me in tears (edmonds was his name) and contacted her directly and she did the rest for me, including contacting my consultant and telling him that I wished to try for a vbac on the birth centre floor. I had all the rest of my appointments with the midwives on that floor as I was also having trouble with my gp and didn't want to do the shared care. I had a successful VBAC with debi delivering. As it turned out I had a haemmorage afterwards (nothing to do with having a vbac) and was wisked up to theater on the floor above with no delay or trouble at all. And then, after spending the night on the high risk floor, debi arranged for me to come back down and spend the next couple of nights in a single room on the birth centre floor. Also, they provide a pullout BED (!) for your dh if he wants to spend the night with you. The whole experience was wonderful.

Queen Charlotte's is great. Have just had my second baby there. The staff are fabulous and many of them have been there for years (always a good sign, in these days of agency nurses).

Bear in mind it is a teaching hospital with excellent facilities for both intensive care (in the Hammersmith, next door) and a Special Care Baby Unit (in Queen Charlottes itself). It has a pioneering foetal medicine unit, for women who have severe problems in pregnancy. I don't know if Kingston is a teaching hospital but I would advocate choosing one if possible, just in case.

Pie- what a generous offer!!! Thanks so much! I'm not having my booking in session for another two weeks (difficult to get time off work and have child booked in nursery at same time!) so I have a bit of time to make up my mind. I am aware that there may not be room for me at my first choice hospital then, anyway, because by the time I try to book a place, I'll be 11 weeks. I must say I'm veering towards QC, although I don't know how the care arrangements will fit in with my GP. For Kingston it's Queen Mary's for checks and scans I think. I'm a bit worried about the traffic situation from Kew to QC. Although it can be a nightmare to Kingston, at least I have the option of going through the park. Oh what a dilemma! Anyway, how shall we play it? When is your appointment? Thanks again pie!

sofiaAmes - thanks for your advice. I'll be happy to use the normal labour ward (which is fantastic compared to the 'dirty cupboard' I failed to have my first baby in), as long as I can try for a VBAC rather than going straight for a section, so at the moment I'm waiting for my next appointment to discuss this with my consultant.

Sorry for the delay in replying to your message bunnie, I've only just seen it!

I have just rung QC and there is a tour on Thursdays 6.30 til 7.30 and on Sundays at 4.30 til 5.30. I'm supposed to ring to let them know I want to come but thats it. A sunday would be best for me having the DD and all I could leave her with my DH on sunday.

Let me know a date, I guess this sunday or next and I can ring and then we could just meet by the entrance.

Hope I haven't left this too late for you!!

Just wanted to add that next sunday would be better for me, but if thats too late I'll see what I can do for this week.

Sorry Pie! I rarely look at the site - generally it's when I'm at work - hence the silence. My booking-in appt is this week, so I'm going to discuss the situation with my extremely nice, sympathetic, female GP. I'm not sure whether I have to make a decision on the spot, but if I have some flexibility, it would be great to delay making a decision so I can see QC with you first. A Sunday is also easiest for me and next Sunday should be fine. Could I leave it that I post another message on Weds, depending on my discussion with my GP, and that we try to go together on Sunday 18th? Once again, thanks so much for your offer!