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If you've have a bad experience on a labour ward, come here and I'll try to help you

38 replies

hunkermunker · 15/10/2007 17:49

Every District Health Authority should have a Maternity Services Liaison Committee - in fact, a quick google of same brings up a raft of hospitals asking for parents to sit on their committees to improve maternity services.

Because that's what they're for - women who've had babies at the hospital feed back their experiences through the committees and those experiences inform new guidelines and standards of care.

One problem these committees face is getting women to talk about their experiences. I've done it, because I'm bolshy as anything and I must always have my say (you may have noticed...!). But I fully understand that had I had a worse experience, or been a less outspoken kind of person, it might have been impossible for me to have anything to do with the place it all happened.

So I thought I'd start a thread to encourage more women to talk about their experiences with their hospitals and support them to try to change things, either for the next time you have a baby, or for the women who use the maternity services after you.

You don't have to sit on the committee, you don't have to do anything other than write your experiences down and send either an email or a letter to the hospital. You can go through the Patient Liaison Service (PALS) (description of their work here).

Also,have a look here to see if your hospital is doing anything towards Babyfriendly status. There's a link on that link for you to write to the hospital to ask why they're not working towards it - the more people who write to ask, the more likely it is that they'll do it.

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phdlife · 16/10/2007 14:34

hunker "labour ward" here refers to the "before" bit, right?

because I was in an MLU that bit went okay, but after the emergency CS they put me in a ward that was nothing short of hell.

Suffice it to say I was the one to take the blood-stained pads out of the bed, the day after surgery.

FlightAttendant · 16/10/2007 14:36

Thanks for starting this thread Hunker, I clicked on it thinking maybe I will do something, but actually when I think about it there was nothing specifically wrong, nothing big anyway, that I feel would merit complaining about iyswim.

It was just the general underfunding, lack of moral or respect for patients, unavailability of a Dr. to prescribe something when I really needed it...that sort of minor problem.

Even so it made me never, ever want to give birth, or as a matter of fact, have anything else done, in a British hospital.

Bumping for those who can put their finger on something more tangible though

hunkermunker · 16/10/2007 14:41

phdlife, postnatal too - sorry, I should've been clearer.

FA, would it help to write it all down? Maybe there's more to it than you think? Then you could contact the hospital and it might help.

MSLCs want to hear from women though, IME. Don't assume that they know all there is about staff morale/the way their staff speak to patients/that they won't be shocked.

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phdlife · 16/10/2007 14:44

hmm thanks I've been meaning to do this since the birth, just needed the kick up the arse. It was such a mixed experience - the anaesthetist who talked me through the CS could not have been more brilliant, the op itself was fab/quick/painless, got skin time etc.

Then they leave me in recovery for 5hrs without so much as a cup of tea or s/wich, and 2 days later I'm still in dirty sheets.

go figure.

hunkermunker · 16/10/2007 14:45

phdlife, I think that's part of the problem - women sometimes don't like to complain when some of their treatment was good.

You can say some of it was good and then say you wish the rest of it was the same.

But it's important to do it.

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phdlife · 16/10/2007 14:49

yas'm

RosJ · 16/10/2007 14:56

hi thanks for this thread. i think this might be better on the birth trauma thread but cant find it and can only use with one hand as i just scalded the other on hot water while washing baby bottle...
i've been suffering from bad urinary incontinence after badly managed labour...went to a gynae at a well woman clinic...she said there was no physical reason, tear repaired well and pelvic floor fine. then she asked me about the birth and i told her as much as i could. she said that my incontinence was prob because i had lost the psychological connection with muscles that control the urethra...because of trauma of birth and becoming disconnected with the area-i felt not in control during birth, so this translated to not controling urine flow. i was a bit sceptical, but havent p**d myself since-about six weeks ago. gave birth one year ago. anyone else had similar experience?
moral of story-if you have gynae prob after birth dont leave it as long as i did-and well woman clinics are great. didnt feel at all embarrassed.

moopymoo · 16/10/2007 14:59

bit off subject but dya know that has just connected something in my brain. i have bad stress incontinence saw gp she said do pelvic floor excercises. had high forceps nighmare with ds1 and i bet thats it. lost contact with the muscles i need to do pf excercises with. hmm back to gp i think.

RosJ · 16/10/2007 15:19

moopymoo-I didnt have to but maybe you need to insist on a referral...and i guess a well woman clinic might be better as they seem more sympathetic and holistic in approach. also say that you have been doing the exercises. i think my experince showed that just talking about the experince at the hospital can have amazing results.

hunkermunker · 24/10/2007 20:56

.

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Bluestocking · 24/10/2007 21:01

PALS at the Women's Hospital in Birmingham where I had DS were amazing - spent ages with me, got a senior midwife to talk through my notes, then made a date for me to see the consultant obstetrician who delivered DS. He spent two hours talking to me and it left me feeling so much better about my very traumatic birth and post-birth experiences.

hunkermunker · 24/10/2007 21:14

Thank you, Bluestocking - good to hear positive accounts where following up has really helped - I'm glad it did for you.

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Boogalooblue · 24/10/2007 21:23

I was just treated shabbily by the night midwife, every now and again I remember it (and her) and regret not giving her a piece of my mind - preferably the piece that said fuck off and die on it

I had a section and was unable to get out of bed/move etc. baby cried so I hit button for help. 10 mins later bitch from hell arrived, she declared that baby was hungry and (I quote) "you mums all want to breast feed and you can't" she insisted I sign a form agreeing to formula for my lo and then tried to force teat into her mouth.

When my lo refused formula she declared "you are going to have trouble with this one - she's stubborn", good just like her mum I replied.

Turned out that the reason for my newborn's screams was a shitty nappy.

If I ever met and recognised that bitchwife/midwife again I would act my age and ignore her. I would like to knock her into next week, but violence never solved anything - or so I tell the kids

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