Have you had a miscarriage since September 2011? Please help with the next stage of our Better Miscarriage Care campaign. SURVEY NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

As you may know, Mumsnet has a long-running Miscarriage Care Campaign centred around our five-point Code of Care, which outlines how MNers think miscarrying women should be looked after. In September 2011 we carried out a big survey on the topic, and asked hospitals and healthcare providers to implement the Code of Care - something lots of them said they were adhering to when we did a Freedom of Information exercise in 2012.

So now we want to know what, if anything, has changed since our last survey. Are hospitals living up to our Code of Care, and to their own stated policies?

For that reason, in this survey we're asking for responses from women who have miscarried since our last survey (in September 2011).

If you have a friend who would also be eligible please feel free to pass the link to the survey on to them.

Obviously this is a potentially sensitive subject and we don't want to upset any of you, but we know many of you do feel it is important to campaign to improve services (where improvements are needed), so please do take a couple of minutes to complete the survey if you can do so without causing yourself great upset.

Everyone who completes this survey will not only have our grateful thanks but also - as a small token of appreciation - be entered into a prize draw to win a £50 voucher for the store of your choice.

Here's the link: www.surveymonkey.com/s/JM2FSFC
Many thanks
MNHQ

[Justonemoretime]

I must just say the the EPU at UCH, London is amazing. All services should visit and see how they do it there.

[Justonemoretime]

I've had 3 in that time frame, happy to help with research... Lots to say, good and bad...!

[RowanMumsnet]

Blimey gotthearse, that's truly shocking (sorry, posted before reading yours)

[RowanMumsnet]

Thank you so much to everyone who filled in the survey, shared it and commented here. We've got enough responses now so we will close the survey today - please watch this space for the results.

[backwardpossom]

Done

[gotthearse]

That's was in 2008.

[gotthearse]

Nurse:what are you doing here, this is an early pregnancy clinic for women who are pregnant. You're not pregnant, so why are you here?
Me: because I was told to come here. And you're the first person to tell me my baby is gone (heading for door in tears)
Nurse: would you like a leaflet?
Me: no.

[Bodicea]

I would like to add that the new rules where there have to be two scans a week apart no heart beat is detected on the first scan on even a reasonable well developed fetus are ridiculous. They are an insult to the health professionals that do the scans and put patients through a lot of heart ache waiting for the inevitable second scan. (cant remember the exact rules as on mat leave and not read the policy in a while - they were introducing it as I was going off). I say this as a sonographer and someone who has experienced two miscarriages.

[beecrazy]

To read all the messages about the awful experiences women are still having to go through makes me both sad and angry.
I had seven miscarriages including one at 22 weeks many years ago and my treatment each time was horrendous (including being put on side room of labour ward on Christmas eve following the 22 week mc and saw no nursing staff all day, also once at 12 weeks put in a geriatric dementia ward as the only space available for 2 days)
To think that nothing has improved in all that time and the thing that stands out is the attitude problem of the people supposedly caring for you. Empathy bypass seems to be endemic in the 'caring profession'.
A gentle smile, a hug or just a touch of the hand would go a long way to help when you're in such despair.

[paperbaghag]

Can't fill this in as my mmc was in December the year before. Thing I remember most was the doctors being baffled I was so upset. They asked me if the baby had been planned - it wasn't. I'm not sure if they then thought I would be feeling ok about it?? It was a bit weird. I was devastated.

Apart from a phone call to tell me when my d&c was and then one the day after to check my bleeding I didn't have any other care or offers of care. I don't know if that was normal.

[GoooRooo]

Done. I thought the care I had was excellent. I do think there is a lack of info on what to physically expect during a miscarriage though. The sonographer answered all my questions, e.g "will I see the fetus?", "how much will I bleed?", "how will I know if it's over", etc but I felt sorry for her with me grilling her through tears!

[Coumarin]

Done. Although just realised I forgot to add to fairly important things. One was that they allowed my DH to stay long past the visiting times and let him stay by my ward bed whilst I was having 'the op'. They even brought him a cup of tea and some biscuits. That was the one good thing they did tbh.

Also forgot to say that I was kept in as my blood pressure was high and the next morning the Doctor brought a group of students with him on his rounds who stood there staring at me and taking notes whilst he asked me about my miscarriage. That was horrible.

Thank you for doing this.

[ClaireStA]

Done. I've had two miscarriages in the last year...and both so different physically and emotionally. As told, I referred to the last one but it all really brought home EVERY experience is different

[elliejjtiny]

I filled it in for my December 2011 miscarriage. It was handled so much better than my miscarriage in 2005.

[number27]

done, thank you mn for this. Miscarriage is just not thought of as anything significant sometimes, especially before 6 weeks.

[thatwhichwecallarose]

Completed.

One thing I didn't add was how alone I felt before my procedure. As it was on a female ward, there was no where my husband could wait with me. And we weren't told how long it would take so he was sat outside for about 10 hours.

[TheRainDrops]

Despite my hospital having a reasonably good EPU set up I was left with precious little practical info when my MMC was discovered last November, I literally left the hospital with no info on what to expect at all, no info on who to call, what to do etc. It was rubbish.

I also echo what barking says about emotional support, especially for women dealing with infertility issues on top of the trauma that miscarriage brings to every woman. Counselling was not mentioned or offered by a single professional I spoke to.

[squizita]

Nickdrakes Not only emotionally painful, but actually quite dangerous. Some 'normal' losses can actually be ectopics or molar pregnancies (very rare but also dangerous) so any woman under 12 weeks presenting with pain/bleeding should be scanned and seen. That is policy: for good reason. As a nation we have incredibly low death/infertility rates from ectopics and molars precisely because hospitals are cautious.

[StampyIsMyBoyfriend]

monstamio :(

Complain. Channel that anger.

I had similar when I had to have miscarriage bloods repeated, despite having the referral letter on screen right in front of her, the nurse asked how many weeks pregnant I was... My face said it all.

[Monstamio]

whoops sorry... damn phone!

[Monstamio]

Ironic timing but I had to add to my comments above. Today I have been contacted by a health visitor to arrange a visit ahead of "the birth"... of the baby I miscarried in November. Unbelievable.

[Monstamio]

Ironic timing but I had to add to my comments above. Today I have been contacted by a health visitor to arrange a visit ahead of "the birth"... of the baby I miscarried in November. Unbelievable.

[Monstamio]

Ironic timing but I had to add to my comments above. Today I have been contacted by a health visitor to arrange a visit ahead of "the birth"... of the baby I miscarried in November. Unbelievable.

[nickdrakeslovechild]

Done, I started bleeding just before 12 weeks over the weekend. Phoned the community midwife who said as it was under 12 weeks I would have to just wait and see what happens as it wasn't an emergency. Carried on spotting over the weekend so got hospital referral on the Monday at the early pregnancy clinic who did the scan and found I had had a missed mc at about 7 weeks. Saw the nurse who said to go home see how it progressed and would have an erpc the following week.
Those days in between bleeding and in pain were awful. Once I got admitted to the hospital for the erpc things were better. As we were leaving they said as soon as we got a positive pregnancy test to go back for a reassurance scan which we did and was great.
When I started bleeding again a few weeks later we rang the hospital rather than the midwife and they said pack your bag and come straight in. Luckily the scan showed a heartbeat and I went on to have a healthy baby. The problem for me was the community midwife and their attitude that as it was under 12 weeks it didn't matter. When you are losing a child, emotional and in pain it does bloody matter!

[Cuppachaplz]

Filled in for most recent, which awful, and I found the hospital very upsetting, and very drawn out.
I have had several before which managed far better. It may be down to location, but for me things have not improved.