Midwife Appointments

[Plunkett]

Hi just wondering what appointments people have with their Midwifes, is each area different?
With first (6 yrs ago) I remember having quite a few and quite reguarly all the way through. I've been for my second appointment today (16 wks) following booking appointment at 8 wks and next is booked in for end august at 28 wks. Is this pretty normal for a second? Not worried as had pretty straight forward preg and labour with first - just seems a long time?

monkey

they did - but that also said baby was long.

my MW was not interested in explaining anything to me about this - just " well thats what you get when you go private" she then said " thats just what my trust guidlines say"

when i asked her if they listen to 20 wk scan dates then- or anything else she fobbed me off , i asked her if it meant maybe my baby was just going to be tall or just having a growth spurt she wasnt interesed in answering me.

so i rang back to my private scan - and SHE went into a long detailed explantion as to what dates and scan they listen too - how far out of this that and the other they pay attention to....

no I'm not her - grow up eliza!

as a service user I would rather your current MW than one who does something potentially very distressing "for fun" - its a MEDICAL DIAGNOSITC tool, its not a bit of fun! it's to find problems!

how exactly do you want her to "clarify your dates?"
I've had early scans with both pregnancies, both midwives and sonographers have told me that you need to wait till your 12 week one for your final date (obv some people need the early scans to know roughly when to book the 12 week scan and bloods) - what did you want her to do?

you do "get that" when you go private, I've had both NHS and private early scans, the NHS ones I've found are far more diagnostic, the private ones I find spend more time taking lots of piccies

monkey

I am astonished by you!

I have had my 12 week scan, they moved me ahead, and a private 16 week scan.

Did you read my last post - about the receptionist saying that not the mw?

My goodness, good luck to you if you would be happy for a matron midwife who doesnt know which form is needed where, or how other hospitals systems work in her area where her mums will be going to. who wont get you in for your 20 week etc!

a matron who gives out blatant lies, sorry - short versions of the truth! and one whose whole attutude and demenour is one of couldnt give a crap.

Also = as she messed up my 20 week booking appointment -

which is a " serious annomoly" scan, that means its now a week later -

if my date is also a week later that means my 20 week IMPORTANT annomoly scan could be 22 weeks - which is quite serious.

Not that bothers you monkey. you seem more upset that a wonderful mw kindly offered to hear a HB at 8 weeks!

Not that it bothered matron!

Also I am not good with numbers and was confused - i took my calender along hoping the MW would just quickly show me what my actual dates are -

according to whatever scan or date she follows.

She wasnt interested.

again, i had to ask the private scan lady to help me which she did!

OP - SO sorry to high jack your thread, basically dont trust anyone with your health, book in extra with your doc if you can....for BP etc....say you are worried....

and i hope you get a nice MW who can make it really special for you.

Monkey i cant understand why you are being so defensive of a rude sloppy matron midwife,

go on - defend her and the scan form and the mess up of 20 week scan!

there are ways and means of saying things and the tone she used was incredibly rude.

my private scanner said her equipment is better than most hospitals and they also do a full MW service there if you want one with NF tests and everything. They are also trained sonographers.

If she says the baby is very long for dates - she isnt pulling it out of thin air.

she isnt an ice cream van operator coming in to scan somone for fun....

because it makes me very uncomfortable that there are midwives out there doing something that can cause a lot of women a lot of distress "for fun".. and you are defending her over a MW who follows the rules (which are there for good reason!)

I don't understand your scan problem. I'm having my scans at a different hospital to where I'll give birth, did last time, sorry I'm missing the problem so didn't comment on that either way, hope that you get all you need either way, best of luck!

sounds like she was one of those HCPs who prioritise being liked over more important things, there are some people out there like that! had a few awful teachers who want to be everyone's fav but let them down academically, that's what your ex MW sounds like to me!

The midwife team where I live has been great since I've started seeing them - think I've met all of them now I'm 29 weeks! - but I am amazed that people are talking about booking appointments at 8 weeks. I didn't get mine until 11 weeks, and when I queried it was just told that was policy; OK Christmas and New Year probably got in the way, but I was panicking about something going wrong having had a previous early miscarriage, and had no idea what to do or who to contact when I had some bleeding at New Year. Thankfully it doesn't seem to have been a problem. I tried to ask about all this when they phoned to make the booking appointment but they didn't seem to want to know. So, great in person, not so good on the phone!

I'm another one with PCOS but didn't get an early scan as we couldn't afford to go private. The 12-week scan only gave me a couple of days different to what I'd thought anyway.

Apart from the later booking appointment mine are pretty much the same as monkeymoma listed.

When pregnant with DD here in the US last year I was seen every month from 8 weeks, had scans at 12 and 20 weeks as well as genetic testing at 12 weeks (Jewish background on my side) and the NF measured (standard here). At 32 weeks my appointments went to every two weeks and then weekly at 34 weeks as I had issues with edema. I had extensive blood tests taken at 12 weeks (16 vials of blood I think) and then again at 30 weeks and 34 weeks as I had anemia.

I am glad my midwife didn't offer at 8 weeks- that is ridiculous. It would be so difficult to hear. Also if you talk to your midwife the way you talk on here, no wonder she gets her back up a bit!

Lots of people don't have their 20 weeks scan dead on 20 weeks. Blimey, the NHS is a wonderful thing and you are obviously lucky to be able to go private, but the NHS isn't private so you can't expect the same "service"

I would much prefer the midwife you are complaining about, than one that tries to listen to a heartbeat for fun at 8 weeks!

Due dates mean nothing really, a due week or fortnight would be more accurate. My due date is 16th Aug according to scan. I think it is more like the 20th. Makes no difference in reality, the baby will come out when it is ready. Why does it matter what the exact due date is?

I'm 22+6 with my first and saw the GP when I made an appointment when I was only just pregnant, saw the midwife at about 8 weeks in the surgery to do booking in, then she came to see me at home a week later and finish off the paperwork.
I have to go for another scan at 32w to check the placenta as it looked low on the last scan. I always just book my next appointment straight away so don't know what others I have coming up but I like having them every few weeks, stops the time dragging! I haven't actually met my official midwife yet, she has been on holiday every time I have been for an appointment.

8w midwife in surgery
9w midwife at home
12w scan
16w midwife
20w scan
25w midwife
32w scan

Mine like to do the 24 week visit for non-first time mothers (if that makes sense) otherwise there is a long gap from 16-28 weeks for urine, bp checks etc. No check with mw after 20 week scan here.

Did you get a bounty pack? The nice guidelines are in there and state how many visits you get.

I forgot to say that at 8 weeks the obn used an ultrasound machine to find the embryo. They also did an internal exam to see what state my pelvis was in. Not only did I hear the heartbeat but DH and I were able to see it. I have to say that DH was a bit disappointed that all he could see was a blob (his words not mine).

I didn't have my scan at 20 weeks because I couldn't fit it into my week. I think I had my scan at 21 weeks. The obn was fine with this and I remember her telling me to book the 2nd scan at some point between wk 18-22 with wk 20/21 being ideal.

monkeymoma

Are you a troll?

I cannot for the life of me understand why you have really focused in one tiny thing one midwife did that you say is - whatever- and have totally written off that MW. Yet the other MW has lied, got forms and procedures so wrong - that hospital staff said she must be new.
she is not new she is a matron and apparenlty in charge of the whole area of MW.

My MW offered a scan at 8 weeks over 4.5 years ago when the rules were probably different.

It wasnt her words that she did it for fun, but the words of a receptionist, so you cannot say whether the actual MW did it for fun. I do not know why you keep quouting that and also willfully ignoring other mistakes and general attitude of another MW - saying she is far better than a shit hot - on the ball MW who didnt make any mistakes and was most helpful and kind to a very shocked and scared first time mum.

Raining -

Mine wasnt difficult to hear - we got it straight away and it was loud and strong.

The point is - the matron LIED about it - she said you couldnt hear a heartbeat at 8 weeks which you can, with some women!

Private means - not private health care!! It means a private " scan", where they do gender peeks, 3d imagining etc.

If you have problems with your anomoly scan as a dear freind did - what week you are is quite important because you may need time to think - and time to decide what you want to do.

I do not expect them to be "spot on", but I just wanted my MW to simply explain to me - why I was moved on by a total of a week from inital doctors dating scan at 8 weeks.

I was concerned that something could be wrong and that my 20 week scan could move me on again.

This also is imp as to the timing of when i had my nuchal blood test done which was at the edge of the recomended time limit. If i am more ahead than thought then the tests may not be as accurate.

I was concerned that the private - scan said i was long for the dates, putting me ahead again.

I just wanted her to explain this to me, or was my baby going to be long.

She wasnt interested.

It didnt matter to her that I was worried and she was not in the slightest bit interested to explain anything to me about the 12 week scan being the most accurate.

she just said - " i am part of X trust and thats what we go on" .

Thankfully the private sonographer was on the phone to me for 15 mins explaining all this, as my own MATRON mw couldnt be arsed.

What it comes down to - is lying, cant be bothered to allay the fears of the woman sat infront of her - couldnt be bothered to explain anything to me, on top of - not caring that other women may be out there waiting for thier 20 week scan to come through - but it wouldnt as she didnt know the hospitals systems, a matron, not botehred about doing anything about it....not wanting to issue me with a scan form for 12 weeks - and me - pushing her - thank goodness i was told i could have been turned away. General incompetence.

Oh but I forgot monky - SHE didnt offer the henious ......HB at 8 weeks!

Eliza you were obviously very lucky about hearing the HB at 8wks, & whatever the rights & wrongs of the original MW, the CURRENT national guidelines are actually not to listen before 20 weeks (I was wrong earlier...), so any MW doing so before would be going against NICE. Not a big deal you might think, until something goes wrong or you want the HCT to go against another NICE policy & they don't...

Also, if you'd read my post, my HCT actually doesn't seem to do a "20wk" scan until 21-23wks. I can't imagine they'd push it back if it actually caused (significant) risk to anyone.

Finally, my baby is measuring long too. S/he is just within the range to be 'on time' according to my LMP but nearly 10mm bigger than my DD

Eliza you were obviously very lucky about hearing the HB at 8wks, & whatever the rights & wrongs of the original MW, the CURRENT national guidelines are actually not to listen before 20 weeks (I was wrong earlier...), so any MW doing so before would be going against NICE. Not a big deal you might think, until something goes wrong or you want the HCT to go against another NICE policy & they don't...

Also, if you'd read my post, my HCT actually doesn't seem to do a "20wk" scan until 21-23wks. I can't imagine they'd push it back if it actually caused (significant) risk to anyone.

Finally, my baby is measuring long too. S/he is just within the range to be 'on time' according to my LMP but nearly 10mm bigger than my DD was at the same date. They haven't changed the EDD although last time, when DD wasn't measuring quite to the mean, they adjusted the dates for the NT combined test but not my EDD. Both scans were the NHS dating scans with the same HCT so not sure why the difference, other than EDD is just that, an estimate, and sonographers have different opinions (which, as trained professionals, they are entitled to...)

Sorry about the double post - there's a Gremlin in my phone...