MNHQ here: Bounty Mutiny (get Bounty and commercial reps off wards) - UPDATE

[RowanMumsnet]

Hello

Thought some of you would be pleased to hear that as the petition to ban commercial reps started by Lauren Harris has passed 10k signatures, the government had to provide a response.

In it, they praise Ipswich hospital for introducing:

'a system where mothers are only approached by a commercial representative if they indicate that this is something that they would like. Mothers can show their preference by placing a card on their bedside table. This is a good example of how Trusts can put processes in place to give new mothers clear control over their interaction with commercial representatives.'

They go on to say:

'The Government is considering how to clarify guidance, so that that the interaction between commercial representatives and new mothers on NHS wards is consistently more positive across the UK.'

So, a small step but hopefully a good one. For the GDPR mavens among you there's also some commentary on that issue in the response on the petition page (please let us know what you think!)

Please do sign the petition if you feel strongly about this - every signature demonstrates the strength of feeling on the issue, and if the petition reaches 100k it will be debated in Parliament.

If you've already signed, you could:

1. write to the hospital where you had your baby (or the hospital where you will be having your baby, or would have your baby at if you had a hospital birth). Bring the response to their attention (they may not be aware of the petition), and point out that the Government has clearly indicated hospitals should have this sort of opt IN system and that other mothers should be left alone.

2. Tweet/share a Facebook post to East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (@ESNEFT on Twitter) to commend Ipswich hospital on its policy, and tag in your local hospital trust asking them to do the same.

3. Tweet/share a Facebook post with the Department of Health and Social Care (@DHSCgovuk) asking them to prioritise new guidance for trusts on this issue.

If you have any ideas for other useful actions to take please add them here!

Thanks
MNHQ

redsummershoes Fri 26-Oct-18 12:50:31
the child benefit form is such a bullshit story.
after each if my births, the form was available at the registry office (different ones each time!) + it's very easy to find online.

It may well be the case that it is readily available, but people are being advised long before they go to the registry office that they need to speak to the bounty rep. It suggests they have an official role, particularly as the nhs also distributes bounty packs before birth.

Last time I encountered one on the post-natal ward, I simply held up my hand and said 'thank you but no'. I think she received similar answers from the neighbouring beds until I heard her almost shouting at the lady opposite who didn't understand much English. On and on she went on at her, even trying to get the woman's dad to try and translate the odd word. She got her sale I think but I have no idea if the woman knew or understood how much, if anything the photos would end up costing her. The saleswoman took advantage and I'm fucking disgusted thinking back to it. I just wasn't in the right frame of mind to step in.

@53rdWay

There'd be nothing to stop the rest of us putting "NO BOUNTY, GO AWAY" cards on our bedside tables at other hospitals too, I suppose...

Blogger Alison Perry (Not Another Mummy Blog) has designed a handy downloadable poster you can pin to your curtains

I’ve signed. No other type of hospital patients would be targeted by sales reps so why are postnatal mums considered fair game? They are so vulnerable.
I don’t think a card on the bedside table would be an adequate system to opt out though. As a previous poster said, the rep would have already had to invade a patient’s privacy to see if they’d opted in or out. I think patients should have positively to opt in, as with GDPR, and records of who’s opted in kept by the staff.

Glad to hear this - my ds was in SCBU and the Bounty woman wasn't very sensitive (to say the least) when she opened the curtain and saw me sat there expressing and no baby

My Dd's are 38 &35. I've signed it because this is unethical. I wasn't aware this was going on. I'm fuming on everyone's behalf.

You could have an opt in system perhaps.

The ward have a list of women that have agreed and bounty get fined or banned for a month or something for approaching any woman not on the list.

This campaign is so necessary.

Midwives where I gave birth were very good, last year, and hearing me yell 'fuck off' at a random with a camera (is that Bounty or some other commercial vulture?) put a do not disturb sign on the door. I'd paid for a side room which made that possible. They warned me that otherwise I'd get several attempts a day.

I signed the petition.

They're an absolute nuisance at best and I can't believe they've not been banned from the wards already.

Good to hear about a smidgen of progress. It was 6 years ago but my birth plan for dc2 boiled down to summarising my conditions and "please tell the Bounty woman to fuck off so I don't have to", and all the staff told me gleefully they had obeyed!
Previously I'd had the joy of one lying that I couldn't claim child benefit if I didn't give my details.

Eldest DC was born on a Saturday and was rushed to NICU, Bounty rep turned up on the Monday morning breezed in pushing the curtain right back to the wall while I was semi naked and trying to get dressed, I had been left with nerve damage during a traumatic birth and couldn't stand properly without my leg giving way, she demanded to know where my baby was so that she could take photos and then just started waffling on about what gifts we could order and the price, when my leg gave way and I collapsed (landing heavily over the arm of the chair) she didn't even stop talking, another new mum started screaming for help and a midwife came running in and had to push her out of the way to get to me. Bounty rep turned up every week day for 2weeks before she could get photos, and she did them while I was in the bathroom not in the room. I was handed the child benefit form (along with my discharge notes) when I was discharged.

Youngest DC was also born on a Saturday, no Bounty rep came, I was discharged on the Sunday and again I was given the child benefit form before I left the ward.

Signed.

For ds I don't remember the bounty rep being too bad, she dropped the pack and left (the lll lady was worse- talking to me when I was trying to eat my first meal for 48 hours). Wasn't too keen on the emails\cold calls afterwards though.

For dd1 who was in nicu, in contrast to pp the bounty lady was fine and actually really friendly around the ward when I was stuck in. Probably helped I was in a bay with other mums without babies in a major hospital that took high risk cases. She just dropped the pack (didn't take details) and left but smiled and said hello when I saw her around.

This time dd2 I decided in advance to say no details or photos. Tbf she was ok with that (although a bit sniffy as they don't sell details on- anymore) but could hear her going round the other beds. The speel was awful and had an inevitably about it, here is your pack, now left me take your details, now I'm going to take some photos. No sign that any of this was optional. I was spared the " oh you have one of each now" bit which seemed to be her thing to the other mums so didn't have to explain dd1 had passed away. Even though I said no I still found her ward presence intrusive, much more than my previous two births which was a shame as the postnatal experience this time was much more positive.

With DD1 the Bounty rep stuck her head through the curtains, looked at her and came out with the immortal line "We won't photograph her dear, she's got a feeding tube in and it will spoil the picture ".
Great thing to say to a vulnerable mum.
With DD2 I told her to sod off and leave us alone.
Be quite happy if they disappeared off the face of the earth. And ram Emma's sodding diary up their arses.

Really pleased to see this. The rep barged into the room where I was going through the outcome of a second failed hearing test my newborn had and interrupted the Dr mid conversation. I know this isnt as significant as other peoples experience but as someone who was clearly upset and worried it felt like a massive intrusion. Luckily he was ok.

My son is 16 months and thankful healthy but when I had him he couldn’t keep his temp up and we had just been told by the midwife that they were going to get a consultant to see him as he had a low heart rate and he needed and ecg. I was distraught at this news especially as he was a much wanted baby after we had been trying for years and had 3 miscarriages (2 after 12 weeks) and I was terrified I was going to have to tell my 6 year old at the time that yet again he wasn’t going to get the sibling we had promised. The bounty woman turned up taking pictures of our son who at that point had two hats on and about 3 layers on trying to keep his temp up even though we were visibly upset. My husband bought some bloody mugs with the pic on just to get rid of her as we wanted to talk over what questions we wanted to ask the dr I will never forgive her

I’ve signed and shared on Facebook. I think it’s disgusting that vulnerable postnatal women are seen as fair game.

I dis agreed. I loved the chance to get a newborn photo at a reasonable price and the bounty rep for my 3 was lovely. Almosthe 20 years on Istill remember her lovely interaction with my pfb

When I had my first DC 26 years ago, the Bounty bag was a wonderful thing: it was huge and valuable: full of loads of full size samples of all sorts of things, and a helpful PN book. Had two more DC (aged 23 and 21), and it was still pretty good: there was a free changing bag full of stuff you collected at Boots.

Gap of 9 years, then DCs (12 and 9) and By now, Bounty is far more intrusive and data harvesting, and offered only a few small sachets and rubbish vouchers.
Pointless and unwelcome.

Anyone else reading this had babies recently at King's College London? I did in 2016 and 2017 and first time I saw one rep in an antenatal clinic but not one on lost-labour ward and I stayed in one night both times. Was very pleased not to have to tell anyone to fuck off having heard horror stories here.

Post not lost!

Pleased to hear this! Although bounty reps were banned at my hospital way back in 2013. I've never had a child benefit form so I hope this makes somebody not listen to their bs

Yes, my bed curtains were pulled back and the Bounty rep demanded to know where my baby was.

I had been put on the post-natal ward after a late miscarriage as there were no beds elsewhere.

I will never forgive them for that.

Signed. I can’t believe this still goes on. Absolutely unbefuckinglievable, bothering post-partum women like this. My own experience was bad enough but pales into insignificance by comparison to others described here.

I am pregnant with my second. First baby was born in 2016, This time my notes came in a different folder not bounty so hoping our local hospital has distanced itself from Bounty.

The Bounty lady poked her head round my curtain and asked if I’d like my baby photographed. I said no thank you and she went away. No hassle BUT why should she be there when my own mother wasn’t even allowed? And what if I’d been naked or breastfeeding etc? Totally unacceptable for anyone other than medical professionals to be on the ward. If I’d said yes then presumably I’d have got the hard sell like the lady in the next bed who consented to photos.