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Original poster

Woman told to walk to hospital gives birth in street

129 replies

kathyis6incheshigh · 17/08/2009 12:41

Here

OP posts:
oneopinionatedmother · 17/08/2009 13:07

aren't women in labour asked to walk around in hospital? and surely, if you arrive in labour, you have to walk fom the car park to the ward?

there are houses so close to our hospital it could be a very short walk indeed...

though yes, i think generally they don't take you seriously when you say 'i really am in labour' - if you aren't yelling, they don't listen....

another instance of why home birthing is great though.....

FioFioFio · 17/08/2009 13:08

Sorry but I cannot understand why she did not ring 999

muffle · 17/08/2009 13:09

That's all true kathy but my point is that on balance, in general, busy hospital staff have to make a decision based on what normally leads to an OK outcome. Most women living nearby and saying they were in labour would be able to make their own way in, and IMO sending them all an ambulance wouldn't be a very sensible use of ambulances.

In this case, yes, unfortunately, she didn't manage to make it in time. But that happens. Why is it the hospital's fault? Also, she was near the hospital and if it had gone horribly wrong they could have got to her. if I was them I would have prioritised sending the ambulance to an accident or someone further away. As it was, yes she had her baby in the street but no one was hurt, the baby was fine.

I think this is a story spun out of not much tbh.

juuule · 17/08/2009 13:10

She wasn't walking in alone, she was with a friend, Reikizen.

I don't think she can have realised how soon the birth was going to be when she set off otherwise she must be mad. I think things must have got going as she was walking.

Can't see that the hospital have done anything wrong.

As others have said it's quite normal to be told to make your way in and they'll be expecting you.

OrmIrian · 17/08/2009 13:10

I was told to go for a walk. DH and I went to Sainsburys. Met my boss who asked me when I was actually due - I told him now and the baby was on the way. He said goodbye and left - never seen him move so fast

JeMeSouviens · 17/08/2009 13:11

The article says she lives 100m from the hospital

OrmIrian · 17/08/2009 13:14

"She said: "They should have sent an ambulance, knowing that the more children you have the quicker the labour is. "

Hmm well maybe she should have 'known' that too and called a taxi.

theyoungvisiter · 17/08/2009 13:15

sorry but I think there is probably a lot more to this than meets the eye. I seriously doubt the hospital said "walk here now".

It's not even clear from the article whether she requested an ambulance - all we know is that she rang the labour ward and was told to "make her own way" which is standard advice.

All the advice I have ever received was that I should call the labour ward when I wanted to come in, and then make my own way unless I felt the urge to push, in which case to dial 999 NOT the labour ward.

No suggestion that she told them she needed to push - no suggestion that she dialled 999 - and confirmation as to whether the hospital knew she was a) alone and b) planning to walk.

theyoungvisiter · 17/08/2009 13:16

sorry that should have been "and no confirmation"

juuule · 17/08/2009 13:19

"knowing that the more children you have the quicker the labour is. "

That's not always true anyway.

stillstanding · 17/08/2009 13:19

I know this is awful and I feel for her but she lived 100 metres from the hospital.

I can't imagine that an ambulance could have got to her quicker and I can't imagine that either she or the person she spoke to at the hospital thought that the birth was that imminent. As soon as the friend realised what was going on she should have rushed to get help ... This doesn't really add up.

reikizen · 17/08/2009 13:20

So the hospital are to blame, but her and her friend hold no responsibility for the situation! If the hospital told you to put your hand in the fire would you do it? (As my mum might say). All I can say is that if she was fine when she left the house, and gave birth within the space of walking 100m, an ambulance would not have got there in time either!
I don't think it's that we don't believe women are in labour, oneopinionated, it's just that for most women staying at home as long as possible is better than staring at the walls of a labour room! For example, if someone rang and said they were having irregular contractions and not needing any pain relief I'd say stay at home. But if they needed something for the pain regardless of the contractions I'd say come in and we'll see what's happening. But if it was their third baby and the contractions were every two minutes with an urge to push, I wouldn't be asking her to stroll on in at her leisure!

theyoungvisiter · 17/08/2009 13:24

I'm also a bit that she hasn't made a complaint to the hospital but has rather gone to the press. Wouldn't the logical thing be to complain to the hospital rather than the beeb?

Original poster
kathyis6incheshigh · 17/08/2009 13:25

OK reading the local newspaper article that Juule linked I agree with you, the hospital doesn't sound so much to have been at fault.

OP posts:
madusa · 17/08/2009 13:31

she isn't the first (and won't be the last) pregnant lady to not make to the maternity unit to give birth.

I don't understand why she thinks that is the hospitals fault.

oneopinionatedmother · 17/08/2009 13:35

@reikizen ok, but on the birth stories read here quite a few women (like me in my first) were not taken for real when they said they thought the baby was comin...

granted on my first I didn't realise how close i was either....

100m is very short walk indeed, and not unreasonable (though not something I'd attempt with a baby in the pipework as twere - i'd ask MW to nip over.)

to be fair, i knew someone who gave birth to her first during a coughing fit, and another woman gave birth in Wilkinsons before they knew what was happening - onset can be near-instant.

AnyFucker · 17/08/2009 13:35

yes, but aren't physiotherapists great ??

NormaSknockers · 17/08/2009 13:39

Obviously we're only hearing one side of the story but I'd be very shocked if the hospital told her to walk to there. Surely she must of had someone on hand with a car, or she could have rung for a taxi maybe?

I was sent an ambulance when I was in prem labour with DS so under certain circumstances they will send one out.

I'm a bit as to why she's gone running to the press with this, she wasn't the first woman to not make it to the hospital & she won't be the last.

PaulDacreEatsBabies · 17/08/2009 13:42

100m is such a short walk - I don't think anyone could have been expected to know that she would labour so quickly the baby would be born en route. Clearly she couldn't have thought so herself - otherwise the sensible thing would have been to stay put. I can't see what the hospital has done wrong tbh.

Babies who are born that fast are (speaking very generally and sure to be contradicted) rarely complex deliveries, they just come out. A friend of mine very nearly gave birth alone in the loo in the maternity hospital. She said she needed to go to the loo so they said "off you go then" and the baby's head came out while she was sat on the loo!

MorningTownRide · 17/08/2009 13:46

Both the hospitals I have given birth in had a walk of more than 100m from the door to the maternity ward. I don't own a car so a went back taxi.

When I have phoned the maternity ward they ask how long your contractions are apart and how you're managing etc. Then they'll invite you in, which is probably what happened in this case.

I honestly cannot see what the problem is.

violethill · 17/08/2009 13:50

This definitely needs reading with a large pinch of salt!

I seriously doubt the hospital said 'Walk here'. I would imagine they gave the standard advice when someone rings in labour, which is 'make your way to the hospital when you feel you need to'. No one offered me an ambulance when I went into labour!!

She then decided to walk (quite logical really, walking 100 metres would be a damn sight quicker than getting the car out and driving and trying to find a damn parking space!!). She then started to have the baby quickly (again, not unheard of - many women have quick labours especially when they've already had several babies). Among my friends, I know two who didn't make it to the hospital on time. Hardly newsworthy.

She then decided to call the press and get her moment of 'fame' by blaming the hospital.

Yawn.....

reikizen · 17/08/2009 13:52

Precipitate deliveries (where babies come out when coughing etc with no or very few contractions) are very rare, and unless you have had a previous one, unpredictable. So when we give advice on the phone it is usually tailored to the normal course of events rather than the highly unusual. But if you feel you want to be in the hospital then GO. It doesn't matter what the person on the phone says! You can always come home again if nothing is happening yet.

dweezle · 17/08/2009 13:57

According to the article she lives 100m from hospital - this is the distance that Hussain Bolt covered in under 10 seconds yesterday . Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying this lady should have sprinted, but to be honest you would often have to walk further than this one in the hospital to reach the maternity ward.

ruddynorah · 17/08/2009 14:07

well the 2nd article explains the gaps in the first article. load of cobblers.

Stayingsunnygirl · 17/08/2009 15:04

And there is absolutely no guarantee that there would have been an ambulance available if she'd insisted on one, or that it would have been able to reach her any faster.

If she'd gone to the press to thank and praise the physio who helped her deliver the baby, then all well and good, but this story smacks of wanting to find someone to blame.