Health Visitors - why don't we have one? (or do we just not see them?)

[FredFredGeorge]

We have a 6month old DD, everything is going well, there's been no problems or anything, there's a clinic place nearby where we occasionally take her to be weighed (but only 'cos we don't have scales that are easy to use to do it) but we've never had any sort of health visitor actually come and visit since the first one when we got the red book, I thought this was quite normal, but then from reading here it started to seem that everyone had one, and I just looked and it says on the net "Every family with children under five has a named health visitor".

So should we be having one bothering visiting us regularly and seeing what's happening, or is it more that they're there if you want to contact them - I certainly don't know who ours is, and am very happy not to have anyone visiting whilst DD is still absolutely amazing and thriving in every way doing okay.

You have a team that's in your red book. There will be a HV at the weigh in clinic. They only do home visits for vulnerable families or ones with specific problems. If you call with a concern they will arrange to see you either at a children's centre or at home. It's basically an opt-in, organise it if you need it service.

Ther are certain regular checks listed in you book. Something like 1 yr, 3 years, I can't remember now, it's changed since my mum was an HV.

I'm a HV and can conform that 95% of my caseload I only see at standard routine checks or at baby clinic.
In my area we have standard visits at 10-14 days (home visit), at 6-8 weeks (home visit) and then a follow up development check at 12 months which takes place at clinic.
I spend 80% of my time on about 5% of my caseload (child protection work/special needs/social services input etc) and the rest on routine visits/clinics/recordkeeping etc. It's a shame as often the "normal" (whatever that is) families get forgotten which is why they often think they don't actually have a HV. Likewise when DS was small I only had a new birth visit from my local HV and bugger all else despite the fact I had severe PND which she knew about.

"confirm" not "conform" (silly me)

It varies a lot from region to region, or at least that is what I have concluded from MN. We saw ours a few times when DD was a newborn, once at about 5 months-ish when she gave us some leaflets about weaning and I think for a check about 2 years.

They don't tend to do home visits, except the first one, and then only if there is a particular issue which you can't discuss at clinic.

DS' 9 month check was at the children's centre, but his 2 year check was at home. I think we had other issues though :(

Don't complain. I'm sure there are brilliant HV who offer excellent advice, but I've yet to meet a mother who's met one.

One visit at home, then to the clinic if you want. I haven't seen anyone since ds was 6 months (about a year ago now).

My hv this time around is very good, the last one was bonkers though.

You will have a hv it should say who and how to contact them in the front of your red book.

My HV was bonkers too (and I speak as a HV so I know she was bonkers) - took the Trust time but eventually she was enabled to retire. Sadly not before complaints from parents, colleagues and just about anyone else she came into contact with!

During a time I was admitted to hospital she phoned the house and got an irritable DH struggling with an outraged three month old DS who was desperate for a feed, she then proceeded to whisper down the phone that she needed to speak to me and couldn't seem to grasp from DH that I was not there - in the end DH hung up and we never heard from her again.

I've got 3 dcs and just found out you can phone your hv for questions or advice. Also that you can go to "baby clinic" sometimes
And that you can go to pre baby class's

Who knew??
Despite (because) i didn't know this all 3 seem fine

I certainly wasn't complaining, and wouldn't really want an HV wasting their time visiting us ("How's everything?", "Good thanks.") when I'm sure there are a lot of cases where people need their help, dillydaydreaming's 5% of the caseload.

And I'm pretty sure I would use mumsnet or similar before I picked up a phone to call someone, but that probably says more about my own issues than the availability of the HV.

Thanks.

In the past new mothers got visited more. For some mothers it was a god send, but for others it was a curse. A lot depended on how you got on with your health visitor and if she was good at what is a very difficult job.

My present health visitor is an amazing woman. I am probably in the 5% of dillydaydreaming's workload. The only critism I have is there is not proper assessment of which mothers are high needs. (Ie. a very nice mother who is taking excellent care of her baby may well be at high risk of postnatal depression due to certain risk factors) It must be hard to do an assessment in one hour.

However in the past there were no children's centres. Support now is different rather than necessarily worse. For example a breastfeeding support group may have one health visitor and one nursery nurse giving support to 8 mothers in a space of one and half hours. Eight women are helped in the time that it takes for one visit. The women in question also make friendships among themselves and create a REAL support network.

What I do feel uncomfortable is that dillydaydreaming spends her time with 5% of mums yet 10 to 15% percent of mothers have postnatal depression and ofcourse there are lots of child protection families who have no mental health issues. That is a lot of women left without professional support.

Sadly access to good care is a lottery in many ways.

You are spot on reallytired. My 5% is an estimate but I know full well that some people with real needs are never identified and get missed.