Pregnant friend moving to Quatar

[missismac]

My friend will be moving to Quatar at 28 weeks pregnant with her first baby. Can anyone tell me what the maternity care is like, and particularly what sort of postnatal care she can expect. How easy will it be for her to link with the expat community and get support. She knows nothing about the place (partner' job is dictating the move) and is understandable anxious.

Tell her to check out the Expat Woman website. There's a Quatar forum and you can ask whatever you want and connect with other expats. There's listings for medical facilities and clinics etc. too.

Make sure the medical insurance your employer is offering covers Pregnancy and birth (plus the baby as soon as it's born)

The medical care will be good but very medicalised, no midwives or HVs, she will be delivered by a Dr, even for a straightforward delivery.

Many health insurance policies won't cover normal Pregnancy/birth, and will only kick in in the event of CS, baby needing special care etc.
Most hospitals will offer a "package", ie a flat rate for antenatal, normal birth and two night postnatal in hospital, make sure your employer will pay for this if the health insurance doesn't.

Qatar has a big expat community, many with young families.
As brennan says, Expat woman is a good place to start- there is a Pregnancy and Babies section

www.expatwoman.com/qatar/monthly_news_pregnancy_babies_7955.aspx

Maybe just semantics but is she married to her partner? Otherwise that could be a big problem in terms of giving birth in Qatar because I'm pretty sure she won't get residency as an unmarried partner and the baby won't either.

Worth considering returning to UK to give birth. I've done this 3 times (from Africa), 2 x NHS, 1 x private courtesy of US health insurance. Much easier birth certificate & passport process, quite apart from any other considerations. Let me know via here or PM me if you/she'd like more details.
And I second the comment about being married, it's the same here in Botswana - my friends had been together 10years, 2 DC's. But no residence permit for her as they weren't married

She needs to be married. She should NOT come to Qatar if she is pregnant and unmarried. She runs the risk of imprisonment. It happens a lot here. Sex outside of marriage is illegal in Qatar.

Assuming it was semantics she has two options - private or state. Most people who have insurance / can afford to pay go private. Thus is because your husband is not allowed in the delivery room at the state hospital. That said state is less medicaliaed and it's the only place to have a really high risk pregnancy (triplets, delivery before 30 weeks etc).

Expatwoman is a good place to ask. She can also try Doha Muns - she can't join until she arrives but there's an 'ask a mum' function for questions.

Some people go home, its not the norm though.

Realised I didn't answer on post natal care. Does she mean for her or the baby? There's isn't a system of home visits here, you need to take you/baby to the hospital (usually once a week for the first month or so but its up to you). I had post partum hemorrhage with my second and was treated well and quickly.

A lot of people have family come and stay post birth to help out. Brits qualify for visa on arrival but I don't think Poles do (just a guess - that's the Polish spelling of Qatar!) Your friend will almost definitely be giving birth on a family / tourist visa btw - most of the time her husband will have to have been in the country six months before she can get residency). That makes the paperwork a bit more difficult but it isn't particularly unusual now.

There are loads of stay at home mums with young kids in Doha - she'll find it easy to make friends and get a support group up. There's a weekly expectant and new mums coffee she can pitch up to as a start.

Zammummy - the not being married isn't an immigration thing here it's a prison thing!

living eek!

Thanks so much everyone. Sorry it took me a while to reply, was unexpectedly busy this week and haven't been able to get back to mumsnet.

The advice is all really helpful. Im not sure of her (husbands) insurance status, but am seeing her this week so will find out.

Living thanks for the postnatal info. So, to clarify, once she's had the baby & goes home there is no in home follow up care at all? Who checks Mums stitches or perineal trauma recovery? What about baby - who does the paediatric check? Who does any inoculations? Who is available to help support breastfeeding? Surely it can't be all hospital based?

Thanks again.

P.S. Not Polish, just spelt it incorrectly

It's all hospital based! If she doesn't have insurance she will be in the government system in which case it's in the equivalent of GP centre but you still have to go to them.

Thanks Living, am seeing her tonight. A quickie - can she have a water birth in Qatar?

Mississ - no. Homebirths also not legal (although I know a few women who 'didn't get to the hospital in time's.

Zesty the rule is/was that you could be out of the UK for a number of years (8?) and still be entitled to NHS care. The NHS trusts would always make it difficult though.

Hello all, I am the friend who is giving birth in Qatar, Doha in June but currently live in London, UK. Thanks for all your advice and will follow up links provided .I will be travelling over in March when I will be around 7 months pregnant. Currently trying to get myself as organised as I can. Heard baby things, pushchair, crib etc are expensive in Doha and choice limited and advised to get things in London. Can't figure out what to buy here in London or wait until I get to Qatar. Also I am limited by my 40kg limit when flying with Qatar airlines and been told I can't carry on a car seat, stroller for free without having a actual baby!
Can anyone calm by anxious overwhelmed brain??

The time limit for being out of the UK is 5 years. I have done it twice (returning from Zambia at 36weeks) & had no problem with 2 different trusts. There is an NHS document that spells it all out, I have a copy if anyone needs it but no idea of link address.

It is surprisingly easy to do & you can get a passport in a week instead of waiting ages for the overseas service. And then you can buy EVERYTHING on EBay

As far as I'm aware zesty. I've had a GP appointment off it. Now not eligible any more.

Hi zesty pm me your email & I'll send you all the details. You'll need to go back & book in with midwives/hospital at 4-7 months - a week's trip should do it. You can return for birth at 36 weeks & be on a plane back 2 weeks after the birth as long as all OK.

My DH was employed by a UK company under UK law so was entitled to paternity leave. He came back 1 week before the births & we left again two weeks later. He now works for a US company so no more paternity leave.
On the plus side though his employer provides global medical insurance which, amazingly, entitled me to give birth anywhere in the world outside the continental USA. So DD (dc3, Dec 2012) was born in the Portland worth checking out if you have such a policy....

Hello all, I am the friend who is giving birth in Qatar, Doha in June but currently live in London, UK. Thanks for all your advice and will follow up links provided .I will be travelling over in March when I will be around 7 months pregnant. Currently trying to get myself as organised as I can. Heard baby things, pushchair, crib etc are expensive in Doha and choice limited and advised to get things in London. Can't figure out what to buy here in London or wait until I get to Qatar. Also I am limited by my 40kg limit when flying with Qatar airlines and been told I can't carry on a car seat, stroller for free without having a actual baby!
Can anyone calm by anxious overwhelmed brain??

Baby things are more expensive here so worth sticking up (particularly on the pram) before you come. However, you can still get everything and there is a lot of second hand stuff available.

Is this your first baby? I've had both my kids in Doha and have come out the other end. There are.loads of mums with young kids out here so it's fairly easy to make friends.

Stocking up

Had my kids overseas, they're British 'cause both parents are but my grandkids won't necessarily get U.K citizenship. It's worth checking with the British Embassy about the process of obtaining a U.K (registering a British birth overseas) birth certificate, steps to getting a passport, as there are more cases of children being born overseas with no nationality/rights to citizenship in either birth country or parents' home country. Do not be complacent and congratulation! Additionally, will your husband be allowed into the birth, what vaccines will baby receive and where would you taken in an emergency & seek a letter from your doctor to say you can travel :)

• congratulations
• would you be taken

Have you been to Qatar before?
Is this your first child?

Mind boggling at possibilities, attitude differences and culture shock in store!

Good luck :D

Definitely worth contacting Doha Mums - a group for mums and expectant mums. You wont be able to join until you actually get to Doha, as you have to attend an event (eg coffee morning), but you can contact them through their website. Once you are a member the private forum is invaluable when new to Doha. If you have any questions beforehand you can send a message via the website (www.dohamums.com) or email the founder of DMs - I will pm you her email address, as I am not sure it is public on the website.

I was in Doha for 4 years, but am back in the UK now, although I didn't have my DC there, so I can't help with the birth questions!