Changing hospital as care has been poor till now.

[montysma1]

I am 30 +4. To date, wrong appointments have been given out (vacant junior doctors staring at notes and asking why i am there?) , appointment letters apppearing after the appointment, me having to chase up results. No anti D or bloods orderered for 28 weeks, (was in todays for them, 3 hour wait as anti d hadnt turned up), notes missing, have never laid eyes on my consultant and have only ever seen very junior doctors, 3 hour waits at clinics the norm.

This couldnt be more different from when I was having my twins at the same hospital when eveything was run with military precision, i saw my consultant at every clinic, scibu care was brilliant.

This is like a different hospital and i can only assume that all the disorganisation is filtering down from my invisible consultant.

Other than the inconvenience and the costs of the extra visits, because things havent been done at the right time, i am actually suffering a great crisis in confidence. I worry that come delivery, which is liable to be c section, I am putting my self in the hands of people who seem very detatched and certainly not very competent, how can I have faith in their clinical judgement when the chips are down? I am actually scared.

I am seriously considering asking to move to another hospital, which although its technicaLLY further away, is actually quicker to get to, has parking on site, and isnt set at the top of a massive hill. And maybe just maybe I would get better care., couldnt be any worse. The irony is that I chose to go to this hospital because i felt they were so good the last time.

Has anyone moved at such a late stage?

I moved around 25-28 weeks last time. It was no problem, and I never looked back.

For me, it was the completely negative, patronising attitude to VBAC birth from both the consultant and VBAC midwife that got to me. The fact that to get the consultant (well, one of her team) to listen to my opinions (which were pretty normal, not extreme at all!) I had to throw my notes in the bin, scream at her that she would not be touching me and that I would give birth at home with no medical personnel present rather than deal with her, and then walk out of the appointment, did not fill me with confidence. Funnily enough, she was really nice to me after that, but I still changed hospitals.

Like you, the hospital I changed to was further away, but in reality only about 5 minutes longer drive. I had a long chat to one of the senior midwives by phone before changing, to assess her attitude to the things that concerned me, and she was amazing. The attitude there was lovely, really encouraging and positive, in touch with the latest research, respectful of patients views, etc. In the end I had an EMCS, not the VBAC I had wanted, but felt I had been encouraged to give it my best shot, and supported to make a good decision about the birth. I will be going there in a few months to have DC3. It is in a different PCT, so totally different policies and staff etc, btw.

I think you still have time to change. I would check out the hospital first to make sure it is better (get recommendations, speak to a midwife there, if you haven't already). Better go somewhere you are confident in, than hope for the best somewhere you aren't happy.

I moved at 36+5

It is very easy to transfer your care and only takes a fax to the new hospital. Ask your CMW and she will do it for you. I called the head of midwifery at the new hospital to make sure it was ok just in case.

I had very poor care at the original hospital.

High risk pregnancy and was told that all was fine.

I was admitted to the new hospital, scanned, examined and seen by a consultant within three hours of the paperwork being sent over. I was a maternity inpatient for 8 days before being induced at 38+ weeks.

If I hadn't have swapped DS may not be here now.

I will never regret transferring. If you feel it is the right thing to do then by all means do it.

Go with your gut instinct. It does sound to me that the care has been sub-standard.

Thank you for your replies. I have a 32 weeks scan and clinic this week and will see how that goes. Any more shambols and I will put things into motion.

The midwives have been great. However, consultant led care for a high risk pregnancy, I feel should mean that you feel you have reliable and competent doctors rather than relying on the midwives to be on the ball.

Precisely Montys, I was consultant led for high risk and never saw a consultant or even a doctor. Nothing was explained, all very blase and I just didn't feel safe, secure and looked after.

I hope your appointment goes well this week and they reassure you. But at least if the opposite happens you know you can swap any time you wish.

Good luck with it all.

Thanks again for replies. I had my 32 week scan today and dont feel any better.

Still no consultant, yet another dopy registrar or whatever he is.

Some back story, I had a high AFP measurement at 16week bloods and had a detailed scan at 18weeks to check for neural tube problems. All fine. The very nice consultant who oversaw that scan (not my consultant naturally, and infact the only consultant i have seen throughout) ) took time to explain that the raised AFP might also indicate problems of slowing growth later on and hence indicated that I would need 2 weekly growth scans from 28weeks.

I have had to remind them of this at every appointment and infact I am only being seen at 4 weekly interevals. Bloke today actually said to midwife "Can I ask a stupid question? Why the extra scans?" On being told there was an unexplained elevated AFP he then said "so why would that need extra scans then?" Proceeded yet again to book me in for a scan in 4 weeks time?

On top of this I mentioned at the last clinic at 28 weeks, that in my previous pregnancy I had been positive for Group b strep, and had stickers all over my notes to that effect. They said 4 weeks ago, we will swab you at your next appointment. They didnt. It wasnt discussed because I actually forgot to ask amongst all the other stuff. But its not my job to be on top of this stuff is it? I'm a bloody patient. There was much more crap today, where the guy was patently winging it, but it would be too long.

Anyway, phoned the altenative hospital and was told I would need to contact "The Midwife in charge of outpatients" at my current hospital. As far as I can determine there is no such person, and spent all afternoon not getting any mid wife on the phone at all. I then contacted the community midwife at my local health centre, to ask how to go about transferring, and she said I would need a GP referal to a different hospital. No GP got back to me today.

Can I just ask how the ladies who have moved actually put it in motion? What ever happens I am not going back to that consultant group. I dont care if I move hospital or move consultant , but I am not putting myself in the hands of a consultant who hasnt deigned to see me but leaves me in the hands of numptys. Sorry for the rant.

For the record, the hospital in question is The Princess Royal Maternity in Glasgow, avoid at all costs.

Have you considered speaking to PALS at your current hospital to see if they can help with either improving your care there or moving you?

monty, they sound awful. I phoned the alternative hospital and asked to speak to the VBAC midwife, who was also the supervisor of midwives at the hospital. We had a very long chat about my concerns, then I asked my community midwife to change where I was booked, which she did. I had no problem getting through to the right person, no-one was obstructive about it.

Who did you get through to at the alternative hospital? You could ask to speak to the supervisor of midwives, and if they ask why, tell them you are thinking of transferring, but wan to discuss aspects of your care with the mw first. Alternatively, you could ask to speak to the community midwives office at the hospital, and see if they are more helpful.

If you are getting nowhere after that, I suggest you present yourself in person to your GP or midwife, and refuse to leave until they get into gear and do something for you. If need be, throw a complete tantrum, play the pregnancy card, whatever. They should be listening to your reasonable requests and concerns, without you having to waste an afternoon on the phone. Shoddy indeed.

Good luck, and I hope you manage to sort this out.

I spoke to the head of midwifery at the hospital I wanted to move to. I explained the issues behind wanting to transfer and she got in touch with my CMW and that was that. I was told that my GP didn't need to be involved at all.

Good luck and I hope you get the care you deserve they sound very lacking.

Hi there, me again. Really upset and worried now.

I was told it def had to be a GP transfer of care letter. This was to be marked urgent to get me into the system for the new hospital.

I asked for this on the friday, the GP would not be back till the monday. When I phoned to check that the letter had been sent, it had been done on the WED. so much for urgent.

Anyway, that was wednesday past. I phoned the new hospital today to find out if I was in the system. I am, with an antinatal appointment on 5 JANUARY !!!!!!.

I am 33 weeks just now, and by then will be 38 weeks before I am even seen at the new hospital.

I was due a growth scan at my old hospital on 22dec, so now I am even worse off. I need to have growth scans fortnightly, due to unexplained elevated afp earlier in pregnancy, I need to discuss c section due to prev section and my age, and my prev pregnancy kicked of at 32weeks with prem labour.

I am now frantic as I fell that I have no care at all if anything happens. If it all kicked of now i would be going to a hospital who havent even seen me. in tears.

The appointment woman at the new hospital was snotty, then I spoke to a midwife who asked why i need the growth scans, and I said about the afp and she said they wouldnt have factored thaT in unless the GP put it in her letter. But the GP wouldnt know any details as all my care is at the hospital and nobody asked her to put details in, I was just told that she needed to write a tranfer of care letter.
What can I do now?

call the head of midwifery at the new hospital. she will liase with the consultants and get you as an emergency case just to get you in the system. explain everything you have written here and insist you are very unhappy with old hosp and need to be at new one asap, just so you know you have care should early labour commence.

As an NHS employee, I recommend you make an COMPLAINT

You can do this to the manager and to the complaints person at the same time. If it's on the phone you need to say "I would like to make a complaint". I think you will find that things move much more quickly (unfortunately).

There is a supervisor of midwives at the Princess Royal and at the Southern but as your concern is not with the midwives, this may not apply.

Hi there

Thanks yet again for replying. Sorry for my incoherent ramblings earlier, I was just very annoyed and upset and incredulous at how difficult this has been.

The midwife that I spoke to this afternoon, in the meantime had pulled my notes for a look (you would think though that somebody somewhere would have done that in the first place), and phoned back before 5pm to tell me that she had got me an appointment for 1pm this monday. So a result.

I really didnt know what to do next, there is no point in ranting at the person on the phone as the chances are its not their fault, and no point in ranting at midwives who are the only folk you get to talk to, as throughout, they have been the only ones actually on the ball.

I suppose the system is just massively under pressure and short staffed, but it is frightening to think that all your care is on a wing and a prayer. However, hopefully I am sorted now.
Thanks again for the advice.