NHS or Private? Thoughts, experiences?

[Beesok]

I know this topic was probably discussed before and I have used the search engine so pls forgive me :) But I am curious about the latest Mumsnetter experiences :)

Am currently 9+ weeks and have to decide by 12 wks, am booked so far with UCH but for private am considering T. Miskry who delivers either at Portland or Lindo (our preference in this case is Lindo because of the NHS emergency facilities)..

We would have to cover the costs of private ourselves and although we can ultimately afford to do that it's not "spare change" IYKWIM....to stop rambling wanted to ask those who went private if it was worth it? Bearing in mind that I have a low risk pregnancy (so far!) and don't plan to have a C-section unless necessary for medical reasons, I think I do want an epidural though...

So for someone who will probably have a relatively normal/average pregnancy/birth is it worth going private?

Another in-between option we are considering is hiring a private midwife (50% of the cost of full private so big difference), anyone had that exprience?

Essay over :) Thanks in advance for your advice!!

Hi, I don't know if this helps, but I'm having NHS care and supplementing it with additional private scans and a private room after the birth. I'm having an elective c-section after an emergency one with DD and can't really afford full private care (I've been quoted around £10k for elective c-section plus associated care) so for me this is the best compromise.

Another route, which my wife and I used is to get a private midwife but have an NHS birth. You get all the bloodwork done at your home and real continuity of care with one person that you trust. For us it included a mobile number which the midwife answered 24 hours a day plus plenty of aftercare after our sons were born. Our midwife charged £3,500 for a first child and I have to say it was worth every penny and an awful lot cheaper than private at the Portland which I believe is now £15k+.

The one caveat is that she cannot be your "midwife" at the birth, but she can be there and act as your "advocate" along with your partner.

Thanks for your responses grumpy and larry
I don't think UCH have private rooms? At least not ones you can book but I will check with them at my next appt.

Larry the private midwife option is one I am now seriously considering - mainly because of the continuity of care that you mentioned - this is my first child and I am clueless as to what to expect etc and would hate to be in that situation and placing my trust in someone I never met!! I think that is the main reason why I am anxious about the NHS birth, frankly I don't care about the rooms (as long they're clean!!) food etc ;)

Keep your responses coming I have a few weeks to make up my mind :)

Beesok,

I would love to be able to recommend the person we used. She is absolutely lovely and a brilliant midwife. However she now has quite a big job back in the NHS and has given up on private practise.

I know friends who have used the Portland and they loved it. Personally I thought it was a ll a bit OTT as they scan you every two minutes and your baby is delivered by an obstetrician even if no complications. If £15k is not loose change, you may regret it later. Ultimately, you will have your child at that point and I don't think the actual outcome is any better than in the NHS (as long as you choose your care advisedly). And, what if you have a second one (or even a third!), then you are looking at £30k or £45k in total. That buys a heck of a lot of babygrows (or nice holidays).

You can have Midwife care at the Portland which is cheaper but have to be prepared if things go wrong you will have to transfer over to Consultant care which will whack up the cost. Im having my 2nd at the Portland and I do not have any more than the usual routine scans and many myself included like the reassurance of an obstetrician just in case things go wrong. You won't be guaranteed an epidural on the NHS and the antenatal and aftercare is superb at the Portland and the Lindo. You will not get anywhere the level of care you get privately unless you are very lucky.

I've got a lot of complications (immunology and a diabetes related) I'm pure NHS at Frimley Park hospital. I've been really pleased with my care, I can't imagine how it could have been better. The only thing we've done privately is a 4D scan.

Having said that my friend had a totally normal pregnancy but is a worrier by nature and hated the fact that all she got was a 12 week and 20 week scan and community midwife appts. She didn't need more than that, had a healthy pregnancy a routine birth and a healthy baby but for her own peace of mind she would have been better with private care just so she felt more supported and cared for.

I think a lot of whether its worth it to you is your attitude to and ability to cope with pregnancy. The NHS, in my experience, will give you a level of care that is appropriate to your needs, that may not be the same as the level of care you desire.

15k???!!! Blimey! To be honest I can't see how that can be worth the money if you're near a decent NHS hospital. I'm in Norwich and all of my friends gave birth there and can't praise them highly enough. Surely all major NHS hospitals are equipped and experienced enough to deal with any difficult births? Each to their own but 15k seems very steep to me.

Hire an independent midwife (I have recommendations if you want them) or google independent midwives (IMUK) and you can find lots on there. My IM has been with me doing all my antenatal care, will be with me along with a colleague who i have also met for my birth at home and care for me for 6 wks after, if I chose to go into hospital she would come with me, like someone else said, she wouldn't be carrying out the clinical care at that point but would remain with me throughout as my support and advocate. From what I have researched, private care at the portland does not mean 'one to one' care and that is really what you get with an IM. Also the c/s rates and intervention rates at the likes of the portland are huge!!! You are much more likely to have a positive birth experience by getting to know and trust your midwife! I realise I sound like i'm plugging IM's but I researched it lots when i fell pregnant, it really is amazing to know who is looking after you and who is attending the birth and to build such a good rapport with her, I was terrified of the birth before I organised an IM and now I feel really positive!
x

Isn't there some irony in the fact that if, god forbid, you run into serious problems it'll be the NHS who will take over?

I've had 2 NHS babies and can't fault my care. I chose to have them at St George's because of its amazing Neo Natal care, which thankfully I didn't need. Of course you don't get scanned every 5 minutes but you will get all the scans you need (I had extra because at one point they were concerned about DS1's growth). And you will see different midwives but mine were all attentive and professional.

If you really do need extra hand-holding (which I totally understand) then I'd say a private midwife would be the way to go.

I live overseas and have "private" medical insurance. I ended up ill and with an emcs and when my friend came to visit (3 x NHS births) she was astounded by the care and facilities.

If I were to go back to the UK I wouldn't touch the NHS with someone else's. I'd beg, borrow or steal the money if I had to.

You do get one to one care at the Portland, you have your Obstetrician plus one to one midwife care and if you do run into serious problems the NHS don't take over as they are fully equipped with world class facilities and staff. It depends on what you want, an IM in theory does sound nice but if things go wrong you would lose control of who was taking care of you but it really depends on what level of care you want.

I am 30 wks pregnant with my first and have an indepdendent midwife & have had my scans done privately. I can't make comparisons with the NHS as have no experience but can say that I am really, really happy with my midwife & the care she is providing. We have built up a great relationship & I feel very reassured to know she will be there at the birth. I am planning a home birth but she will accompany me to hospital if the need arises although could only be a supporting role/advocate there. She also offers excellent postnatal care.

I guess I'm just echoing what sirgeorge says. Even if things don't end up being straight forward & you need to come under an obs having someone you know & trust to be there with you & support you could make all the difference.

Beesok - look into the NHS system where you live. For example, if you book for a homebirth under King's in south London, you will see the same midwife throughout your pregnancy & she will attend your birth (assuming you are not 2 weeks late like I was & she's gone on holiday!). Even when we transferred to hospital the midwife stayed with us to advocate for us.

I had an NHS birth but by coincidence saw two obstetricians who deliver at the Portland - one who did a sweep that got the labour going, and the other who delivered my baby right at the end. Although I'll almost certainly never have the money to pay for a private birth if I get to have another one, if I did I would seriously consider booking him as he was quite simply brilliant - relaxed, supportive and kind, but more importantly got my baby out safely and stitched me up so I healed really well.

Hi, I was at the Portland and had such a good experience, but being my first birth had nothing to compare it to. From friends who've had NHS births, I can tell you their experiences are usually nothing like I had- there was always some major shortcoming in some way. Even those who were straightforward births had a rough time getting any help after the birth. UCH does offer private rooms (I know because I am on antenatal care there right now), but they're first come first served, so may not be available even if you can pay for them, and even still you're expected to vacate within 24 hours after birth. Honestly I wouldn't chance it- after evaluating the two, I'd always go private if in any way possible. Heard lots of great things about private midwives, though, I just have no experience there. Best of luck for a great birth either way!

Thank you everyone for all your responses!!

Iskara thanks for the suggestion but there is no way I will have a homebirth :) am not against the idea at all but it's just not for me ;)

Unfortunately, when I asked at UCH they said that the probability of seeing the same MW and also having her at the birth are realistically quite slim. In addition, although I am hoping for a straightforward natural birth I do not want to give up the option of having an epidural etc so will certainly need to be on a labour ward for that (I know that the birthing centres are usually much nicer but then not everything is available there).

Oscalito I know what you mean - I am currently seeing Mr Miskry (I had an ERPC in Nov and thankfully my insurance covered that) and he is absolutely fabulous - he is the reason why I am considering the private route in the first place as I would love for him to handle my antenatal care and delivery and I am happy to pay HIS fees but then the hospital ones are huge and I am worried about how quickly costs would mount up in case myself or the baby would need emergency/extra treatment and yes, as *TheHouseof Mirth" pointed out it would be ironic to pay for that when I would get it for free on the NHS :S

I am not a UK citizen and also used to a completely different style of care re obstetrics as wells as from friends' experiences but I also think the NHS is quite good in many ways and well, giving birth outside of London is not an option as I want my husband to be there and I don't want the hassle of travelling with a newborn - I want to go straight home to a familiar environment :)

I also agree with the notion that you don't actually need ten thousand scans (although they can be addicitive hehehe) and that you will need relatively minimum "intervention" throughout a normal pregnancy :) so not too fussed about that and frankly a scan at the FMC is about £150-200 so if I need an extra one or two it won't be difficult to get one....

Sorry for rambling - I think this is helping me process things in my mind so please keep commenting :) and thanks for all for sharing your experiences!
xx

Cheeky bump up :)

OK at least I decided that I DEF will need some form of extra private care in addition to NHS so that's one decision made, now I just have to think if I want to give up more or less ;)

Just to add my 2p worth!

I'm not in London, but I had absolutely no complaints with the standard of care I received from the NHS when pg with DD. When she arrived early at 33wks they looked after the 2 of us wonderfully, including spending lots of time helping her to learn how to latch on so we could bf.

This time round they have also been fab, lots of extra scans & care incase this one comes early too (37wks now so looks like I'm going full term this time!)

bessie26 am glad to hear that you had such a great experience, sadly I noted from other people's experiences that NHs care is much better outside London - well, I guess it's logical - London hospital tend to be more crowded etc....

My husband is leaning towards the full private :) and I am so tempted myself but will give myself some time to really think it through....

I would honestly save your money - there are so many other things you could spend 15k on in the future.

I had my DD at UCH and although it wasn't "VIP" treatment I felt safe all the way through. I saw the same midwife for 80pct of my appointments and she even popped onto the ward to find me after I'd given birth - just to give me a hug. I never saw a doctor. I had an extra scan (free) at 41 weeks to check all was OK (it was!). I thought I wanted a private room, but actually found the little 4-person bays (all with curtains) strangely comforting - nice to listen to other new mums figuring it out same as you.

I understand the feeling that more money = better service and I understand wanting to make sure all is as perfect as possible but it's an awful lot for what comes down to about 24 hours of your life.

Even if I had millions I would just go back to UCH, same as before

Valbona thanks for your message - that is really comforting :)

My husband wants me to be 100% comfortable and I think he is worried about me (I am a bit of a panicker although I pretend otherwise ;) but I agree 10-15k is a lot and I have lots of interesting ideas on how to spend that other than on a hospital labour ward he he he

I have a 12wk scan at UCH on April 11, and I have given myself until then to make a final decision.
Although, I must say it is very reassuring to hear comments like yours I will still probably get a private MW - seems like a balance of what we need and also they allow you to divide the amount interest free over 12 months so it's bearable :)

I am

1. a worrier and 2) not a UK citizen, so used to what friends and family told me about the care in my home country. Still, i had my DS under NHS care and felt absolutely well looked after. I had 5 scans, 2 of which due to me panicking about sth. I got extra blood tests done due to another worry of mine. Throughout my pregnancy i saw the same lovely MW at my GP practice. There were different ones at the hospital, but i was fine with that. Whenever i was worried about sth i popped to the maternity assessment unit at the hospital. You can also see an ob there. The only time i felt the nhs was not great was for postnatal/ breastfeeding advice. For this i would make sure to get in contact with your local nct bf counsillor. Honestly, i would put the 15k into a bank account for your child.

Hi vez123 you sound like me - "worrier" doesn't begin to cover it ;)
And it doesn't help that a lot of my friends who I am finding out that are pregnant have decided to opt for private care.

I wake up one day thinking one thing and then someone says something and it's back to square one! Boy this must be one of the moaniest threads on mumsnet!!!!

But then I am that kind of person who will google/research the silliest things to death and after all this is my first baby ;)

Out of curiosity did you have your baby at a London hospital?

Yes, i had him at Kings.
I have no experience with UCH but have you thought of going on a tour of their labour ward? At Kings you just show up, no need to sign up. I found the more you get yourself familiar with a place the more comfortable you feel about it.

I can see a private midwife / doula to support you during labour could be the very thing. that is a potential drawback of the NHS - in the earlier stages of labour in hospital you are often labouring just with your partner. it could be very reassuring to have a calm, experienced presence there to keep reminding you that it's all OK (hard for your husband to say that first time round when he's never seen anything like it before!)