Oh Wythenshawe Hospital. Where to start? The website promises state of the art birthing suites, luxerious pools, have any of your family members come & go as they please, recover in a private room if you request. They promise all the same on the tour.
So I chose to have my first baby in Wythenshawe Hospital and for the rest of my life I will regret it.
I was put in a room with none of the things they promise, but an old bed with no pillows, no blanket & a canteen chair for my boyfriend to sit in.
I was rushed through for an emergency C-section ofter 3 hours of mild labour pains; nobody would actually specify what the emergency was!
I was guaranteed a private room. I was put in a 'poorly baby' room with 5 other women crammed in there. Each room was only meant to accomodate 3 women & their babies. Me & my baby were fine, my son was an angel throughout our stay but the babies in the room with us were in need of specialist care & neither me nor my son had any sleep in 72 hours for the combined force of 5 babies joint screaming.
As I had a section I needed a catheter (tube they put inside your urethra that your wee goes down,) it was wrongly placed twice & therefore the bed I was in was soiled twice.
The catheter was ripped out 3 different times by orderlies sent to change my bedding ONE HOUR after my surgery, when I couldnt walk.
Nobody came to administer to my pain relief the whole time I was there. I had to ask each & every time. I couldnt walk due to the numbing medicine from the section & each time I needed some help I was treated as a chore.
I needed help changing my maternity pads in the night due to the numb legs, I had to buzz 8 TIMES for somebody to come & help me.
Eventually I leaked, soaking my bed in blood. They sent an ORDERLY who spoke no english, NOT a midwife, to help clean me up & change my pads.
The orderly again ripped out my catheter & when she went to get a midwife to put it back in, the midwife wore a look of disgust, grimacing through putting it back in for me. Each time the tube had to be placed back in, it was agony.
I was only allowed 2 visitors other than my partner for two one hour periods throughout the whole day. There were no visitor toilets & my mother was refused entry into the patient toilets. They told her if she needed the toilet she had to spend 15 minutes of her visiting time walking to & from the visitors toilets in the entire opposite wing to the hospital.
When I think back to the birth of my first baby I dont remember the elation, the joy, the new baby smell, visitors bringing gifts (visitors were asked NOT to bring gifts.)
The memory I'll always carry with me is being held up by 2 midwives & my mother as I couldnt move my legs, naked & sobbing with enormous clots of blood & urine pouring down my legs while orderlies changed my bed for the 4th time due to bed leakages from poor care. All in my first day of recovery.
In the end I discharged my baby and myself and refused to wait for them to all clear me.
We're currently seeking legal action against this hospital for gross neglect.
Please do not go to Wythenshawe Hospital. I wouldnt wish my experience on anybody.
Much love. xxxx