QEH Woolwich - Help Please

[diz29]

Hi Ladies

I am under this hospital but have heard and spoken to some of the rudest people I have ever met in there! Can anyone tell me their birth experience at this Hospital?

I have tried to change to St Thomases and they wont accept me and I cant go to QMSID!

Im not bothered if you have had nice/horrible or want to say it how it is warts and all im not squemish!

Many Thaanks in advance

Hi - don't have any experience of the hospital at all but I've never heard a good word said about it, I don't know anyone personally who has experienced it either, just what I've read in the local papers, and a friend in the medical profession was offered a job there but wouldn't take it because of its reputation.

What wouldn't St Thomas' accept you and why can't you go to QMSID?

*Why

Don't know about the maternity side of it, but I know other area's are not good.

QMH is lovely. I've had both my Dc's there 8 years apart.

Can you go to Lewisham instead? I had my DS there and they were mostly lovely. And, according to a paramedic mate of mine, Lewisham is 'the second best maternity unit in London'.

I have a good word to say about it!!! My birth nearly went horribly wrong when DD got stuck. The emergency staff were AMAZING!!!! they got her out safe and well. They reconstructed me and I (touch wood) have healed brilliantly. The Anaesthetist was excelent and I will not have a bad word said about the post natal staff!!!

The staff are stupidly over worked and underfunded but they clearly do their best.

I cannot thank them enough for getting my DD out safely. And I cannot thank them enough for the support they gave me when I was pretty much immobile for a few days after the birth - extra thanks to the night shifts!

i have had 2dc there, and had mostly great staff, no problems. I do not think it is any worse or better than lewisham, sidcup or st thomas's; i know women who have gone to all of these and had terrible experiences! QEH is a busy unit and post-natal care is similar to other places - not brilliant. Early discharge home was a good option for me, and planning to have dc3 at home.

lewisham is supposed to be opening a midwife lead unit any day, is that worth considering/looking at?

local papers /any papers rarely report good medical stories. Similarly, people seem to love to tell pregnant women about horror stories of labour.

SGB - OMG, I had mine there!

Diz - get your mw to take you to see it. Sounds as though others have had ok experiences.

As said above, everyone has a story to tell about every hospital, every experience is different and it's the bad ones that get in the papers.

I had 3 at the same hospital, each three were different, one was not very good.

Go and see it.

Take care.

I think you hear horror stories about all the hospitals to be honest. I've not heard great things about Lewisham...

I had DD at QEH and had a pretty crap experience, TBH. In large part due to a shitty locum midwife. Medically they were fine, but she was very much of the 'shut up, you can't possibly be in pain, you're only 3cm' school, despite the fact that I'd been having strong contractions for 36 hours by that point...

Have you thought about a home birth? Many of the local midwifery teams are very supportive of it, including for a first. I know 2-3 people near me who did it, and more for 2nd/3rd children.

If not a homebirth, what about a doula. It's the one thing I really, really wish I had done differently. QEH are medically fine, it's the time to emotionally support you that is lacking, and a doula can provide that.

Finally, I ended up needing forceps and the registrar was lovely, lovely, lovely!

Hello again Ladies - Let me give you some brief history (it may help)

I found out i was pregnant and had booking in appointment and was referred to consultant care straight away due to high BMI - the consultant was probably the meanest man I have ever met in my entire life and I refused to go back, I spoke to midwifes who then said that I should go under the GP led antenatal clinic at the surgery which is what I have been doing since 15 weeks! Midwife have refused to get involved in any of my care until I hit 28 weeks (which I am on sunday) anyway I asked for St Thomas's as it is my local hospital to work and as ALL my family live in Surrey it was a half way point with a direct train from where I live (OH doesnt drive) it also has a fantastic midwife led unit (home from home) and as I thought patient choice mattered I printed out the forms and took them to GP who then said she wanted midwife to look at them, midwife said it was an "over immigrated populated area" and I had no chance they were to busy! If I go to QM SIDCUP I dont know how to get there and neither does OH - we could just jump in a cab and I wouldnt have to change docs either but it just seems daunting as we dont know the place (stupid reason maybe but i need OH to feel comfortable otherwise I wont)also I work for ambulance and have spoken to the midwifes and TBH they are just rude! The community midwife I met in the corridor at antenatal said this was cos they are agency staff and are overworked but im sorry thats not really my problem and when im in labour I dont want to have their work related problems shoved down my throat - i dont do it to people and ive delivered babies (even if it is over the phone)!!

So there we have it - my reasons!! LOL

QM Sidcup is reducing its services to MLU only as all the Obstetrics are moving to either Bromley or QEH. If you're considered "at risk" then you wouldn't qualify for MLU.

Have to say that my ante natal care from QEH has been really good. Midwives have been lovely. Ante Natal classes really reassuring and the extra Consultant's Ante Natal Clinic appointments I've had (for high BMI and history of depression) have been fine too. OK so they've been a little rushed and the Consultant was quite straight forward about saying things as they are, but they were fine.

I gather that St Thomas' does get quite a lot of out of area patients (people scared of the Royal London!) - I think the NHS calls it the Laura Ashely effect - because of it's home from home centre, so yes, if they are mega busy, you can expect to get "bumped" to another hospital. But I gather that happens at QEH once a month as it does Lewisham and Sidcup. And QEH gets people who want to avoid the Royal London too.

Have you looked at Lewisham? They've got a brand new MLU opening really really soon.

Do you live in Lewisham diz29? I got told i wouldn't be excepted by St Thomas' by Drs until I kicked up. Have you tried getting in touch with them yourself?

Why don't you consider Darenth? I have just transferred my care there from Sidcup and they have been AMAZING
I have heard dreadful things about all the local hosps. If I had to choose between QEH and Lewisham- i would go Lewisham....