Pregnancy in the UAE

[ohiwishyouwerehere]

Good morning all,

I was hoping there would be someone on here who can help!

I'm around 6 weeks pregnant with my first baby (confirmed by my local doctor) and I'm utterly confused about what happens next.

There is no midwife system or referral system like in the UK- how do I know who to go to and when? Do I choose a doctor and stick with them for the whole thing? Or do I choose a hospital and they assign me a doctor? Nothing makes sense to me. I don't have family here and few friends so I've no one to ask about where to go from here.

Thanks

Hi
I’m back in the uk but when I was pregnant in Dubai I found Jasmine and Amy’s support and expertise to be amazing

www.loveparentinguae.com/

Most of the insurance companies wirk slightly differently to each other. And most hospitals have packages

I went to Al Zarah. They weee great but that was 5 years ago which is a lifetime in Dubai

Congratulations

Ah amazing thank you! Al Zahra is on my list to look at as well :)

I would suggest getting in touch with jasmine and Amy. They will have info on which hospitals and doctors to look at

Just so you know, I originally started with 1 doctor/hospital and over time started to realise that he was very old school and set in his ways (delivery had to be in my back in stirrups because that was what he was most comfortable with 🙄), he also did an ultrasound at every visit which I didn’t realise was charged for and gobbling into my insurance.
Anyway, when I decided to change hospitals and doctors it was no problem, so don’t feel like you have to stick if you are not happy with your first choice

By the way, I was with Dr Yamini in Al Zarah and she was great. She worked in the NHS for years

Congratulations!

I’m nearly at the end of my pregnancy now, if my experience helps you then I’m happy to share.

I’d suggest finding a hospital you like first and from there see which drs they have or that can deliver there. I did it the other way round and it wasn’t a hassle to change but I think in hindsight I’d have preferred if I could have had the same dr all the way through.

I decided on Parkview Mediclinic in the end, very happy with all the care I’ve received so far.

I’d try to join British Mums group on Facebook if you can as lots of discussion on there about hospitals and obstetricians if you search. Also see if there’s an active group of women expecting the same sort of time as you, I found a group called UAE mums due February, March, April which has been really helpful.

Oh thank you @sunshineandgin that's good to know. I'm just finding it a bit of a minefield. I'd been recommended some at Heath bay but my insurance isn't valid there; it is valid at parkview, city and al zahra.

How many scans do I actually need? How will I know if there are too many or if I'm going to pay for them?

Thank you

I’d find out what your insurance covers for maternity first. If you can’t find it in the policy then call your provider and they’ll be able to send you the relevant information.

Since it’s private medical care they’ll scan you every time you go if you let them since that’s how they make more money. If you’re not comfortable with that then you don’t have to. You will need a scan at 12 and 20 weeks same as the UK and then depending on those you may want more scans particularly later in the pregnancy. The first dr I saw wasn’t very good at telling me what was needed my new dr is much better - for example I started seeing my new OB when I was about 27 weeks I didn’t know about the glucose test for diabetes until that appointment even though it’s meant to be done before 28 weeks! Luckily she got me booked in for that ASAP and thank goodness she did as I tested positive, I feel I’m in much better hands now but it helps if you’ve got some idea yourself of what to ask as otherwise I think some of the drs are not very proactive with stuff.

I opted for Parkview as City is too far away from me and Al Zahra never returned any calls or emails so I didn’t feel like they had time for me. Parkview have been quick to respond to any queries and I really enjoyed the tour of the maternity and delivery ward, it was really informative. I’ve been told a lot of the drs and midwives there work at both city and Parkview. I have heard positive stories from those who’ve delivered at Al Zahra recently though so it is just down to where you feel comfortable.

Hi!

I had both my babies in Dubai at Al Zahra and had good experiences (my first was a particularly lovely water birth)

I know you said your insurance doesn’t cover Healthbay but I can’t speak highly enough about the midwifes there in terms of postnatal care. They are a (mostly British and Australian) team of lovely ladies who run the baby clinic - you can take your baby here to be weighed and measured etc and also they give fantastic breastfeeding advice. In the early days you will probably have a ton of questions that don’t necessarily warrant a pediatrician appointment and they are amazing at just reassuring you, never rushing you and basically acting like your mum/aunty.

I would really recommend doing some kind of antenatal classes, if only to meet some other parents-to-be. We did antenatal classes through Healthbay and also Hypnobirthing classes through a lady called Jasmine Collin (who I think someone else has recommended up thread!) My husband and I met five other couples through these classes and five year and many babies later we are all (genuinely) best friends.

Good luck! I think Dubai is a fantastic place to have a baby!