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Original poster

Have you delivered at a mw led unit where there are no consultants?

35 replies

BoysBoysBoysAndMe · 02/06/2012 15:02

Pg with dc3. Both previous babies were born where epidurals, c sections, emergency cases could be handled on the consultants unit.

Thinking of having dc3 at a mw led unit as it seems lovely and much more relaxed and 121 care from a mw, which I didn't get last time.

Now last time I had to be prepped for a c section as baby was distressed, meconium and heart rate dropping. But mw has said I'm fine for the mw led unit this time, as things weren't progressing well last time and if that happened at the mw led unit, I would have been transferred to hospital hours earlier iyswim.

Like the idea of it and it seems lovely and I think I'd get more support there which I didn't get in the hospital, which personally- I need.

What was your experience of mw led units?

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Original poster
BoysBoysBoysAndMe · 02/06/2012 15:03

Oh- had ventrouse delivery. Tried ventrouse and if that hadn't worked id have been given a c section immediately.

OP posts:
chipsandmushypeas · 02/06/2012 15:48

Bumping as I would like to see some experience on mw led units too

cherrypieplum · 02/06/2012 15:50

Bump!

I'm hoping to have my first at a MLC hospital. Still unsure though.

chipsandmushypeas · 02/06/2012 15:54

cherry this is my first too, and I'm wondering if I should just give birth in hospital first time. I would definitely prefer a more relaxed, natural approach though

blondiep14 · 02/06/2012 15:55

Yes. I had both DS1 and DS2 in a MLU with no consultants.
Both were fairly straight forward births although with DS2 I was almost transferred to the general hospital as was shattered and begging for drugs!
I stuck it out a bit longer and had DS2, 10lb 1oz!
Was brilliant care.
They were a bit busy after so we waited a while to have him weighed but that didn't matter a jot. Stayed 2 nights with both, just because I could. First time I was one of two women in, second time I was the only person on the ward!

Original poster
BoysBoysBoysAndMe · 02/06/2012 18:17

Thanks blondie.

We've been told dh can stay over too and stay with me which is great as he had to go home an hour or so after ds2 was born as it was 3 in the morning.

Did you feel confidant that they could help you in an emergency?

OP posts:
blondiep14 · 02/06/2012 18:46

That's nice. No partners staying at 'mine' but I didn't mind, was shell-shocked after DS1 and high as a kit after DS2 (only hormones!).

The way I look at it, if an emergency crops up I would be blue-lighted to main hospital, about 20mins away. If I was delivering in main hospital and an emergency cropped up, it would probably take 20 mins or so for a consultant to arrive.

I'm not saying it isn't, or wasn't a concern, but I had faith the MW's would know the signs of any trouble and deal with them swiftly.

I may not be able to have this baby in the MLU as there is concern it may be humungous and I feel a bit sad at that!

Mind you, I can (and shall) get transfered there as soon after delivery as possible as it's so quiet and lovely! Is that an option for you?

monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 18:52

not really, was booked into one so laboured there but was transerred to "proper" hosptial

I didn't have my own MW at the MLU, it was night time and they wouldn't wake the on-call, I got someone else's MW popping her head in every now and again and forgetting everthing I asked her

They transeffed me HOURS after they should be, and it was not fun being wheeled around on a stretcher

I don't see the point of them, you get more support at home because you get 2 MWs, and they don't have any extras that you can't have at home, plus you get a faster transfer to hospital if needs be with a home birth because you have your own midwifes there - a captive audience as it were..

The rooms were nice and airey - but it's not a naughty weekend away so f* the rooms!

I'm not allowed back to the MLU but would refuse it if it was an option.

monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 18:54

I honestly think they should be demolished and the resources re-directed into home births, so it's home or obs hospital, MLU is not a middle gound you get NOTHING you couldn't have at home and you might get less than you'ld have at home like I did

laracroft2001 · 02/06/2012 18:56

I had a dS in a Mlu in east London and it was fantastic. Private room, dh could stay all day and night, kitchen to make tea coffee food as often as wanted, double bed, birthing pool in room, own bathroom and midwives were excellent and not too Intrusive.

If there were any problems I could have been ambulance transferred to the hospital within 6 minutes.

If you can- do it

cherrypieplum · 02/06/2012 18:58

chips Yeah I'm really in two minds about it. Especially if something does go wrong my nearest hospital is not the one they'd take me to because of the health board which I think is ridiculous.

The MLU is brand new, the staff are amazing and they'd let my DH stay over with me. The hospital is nearly 40 minutes away via some quite rural roads, the parking is awful, I've not heard good things about cleanliness and I was spoken to horribly over the phone by a midwife when I hadn't felt the baby move as much. Other hospital is ten minutes away from my house.

ginmakesitallok · 02/06/2012 18:59

Only benefit to our MLU over home birth is that it is ajoined to the main hospital - so if anything went wrong a consultant is only 5 mins away. I had DD2 in MLU- it was fine. Her birth was really straightforward. Only thing is I spent ages in the assessment room - i.e. the mw didn't seem to think I was in labour, just spent the time asking me to describe the contractions. When she eventually checked how far along I was (only because she was going off shift) I was 9cm. Straight to delivery room and had DD within 20 mins.

monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 19:04

"Only benefit to our MLU over home birth is that it is ajoined to the main hospital "

yeah those ones are okay
mine wasn't, hated being stared whilst groaning on a stretcher through the whole hospital to get in the ambulance!

everyone in my postnatal ward room had been transferred from the MLU too

Original poster
BoysBoysBoysAndMe · 02/06/2012 19:43

Home birth isn't really an option as we have two small children who will be here with relatives. Space is an issue at home too tbh. We are hoping to move before baby arrives but that's probably a whole other thread!!

The Mlu is attached to a hospital and it only opened in dec. apparently they've had 85 ish births with only 1 needing to be transferred to hospital.

But my main concern is the hospital we would be transferred to is not the hospital the Mlu is at, but about twenty min drive away.

I've been told its 121 care there which I'm really keen on, but I just don't know!?!

Mixed bag of answers so far.

OP posts:
monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 19:48

my MLU was attatched to A hospital too, but it had no NICU and no obstetrics doctors (does other stuff like heart wards, urology wards, day surgery etc) but NOTHING that could back up the MLU

I was also transerred back to the MLU after a day on the other hospital post natal ward and only one woman on the MLU's post natal ward had delivered there, the rest of us started there, transferred to other hospital for birth, then booted out back to MLU as that was were we were booked, so not convinced that 1:85 is an accurate ratio. Also every woman from my antenatal group that started at the MLU transferred to the other hospital too

monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 19:49

the hospital I delivered in has a MLU as well as obs run labour wards and NICU, that's what I mean when I say MLUs that are joined to hospital

I call mine a stand alone, because although it is attatched to a largish general hospital, there are no other maternity/neonate services based there

Original poster
BoysBoysBoysAndMe · 02/06/2012 19:57

That's what 'mine' would be monkey, a stand alone.

Do you know why so many were transferred?

OP posts:
monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 20:02

all kinds of reasons

the ones in my post natal room all needed emergency CSs

only one of the other women from antenatal (who were orignially booked into MLU, not all were) had a CS but others had problems which needed monitoring/intervention, one was quite scary actually because the problems were only identified in the 2nd stage and the 2nd stage wasn't progressing properly, baby was okay in the end, poorly when little but fine now

I don't know why all of the ones who were transferred back after had gone, we were all a bit shell shocked (and pissed off and being transferred twice and not being allowed to STAY in the other hospital once we'ld been transferred there) but one of them that I spoke to most didn't have a CS but her baby was poorly but not NICU poorly

EverybodysSleepyEyed · 02/06/2012 20:06

I had my second in the MLU adjoined to the hospital so in an emergency they put you in the lift up to the labour ward

it was brilliant - room was like a hotel and dh could stay. birth was very quick and we didn't want to stay any longer than we had to so we were out in 7 hours

I wouldn't have done it if it hadn't been attached to the hospital though

KenDoddsDadsDog · 02/06/2012 20:07

My sister gave birth at a brand new MLU attached to the hospital. It was a bit like a hotel. Very peaceful , not medicalised and her DH stayed over.

monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 20:07

me, I had a fever (not identified in MLU, they do not like doing normal "obs" there even though it was in my birth plan), needed an epidural, had a back to back baby and had a 2nd stage CS because baby got stuck in my pelvis, also would have to had been transferred anyway because waters broke before any other labour signs, and time was getting on... was a long labour

SwissArmyWife · 02/06/2012 20:07

I had DD in a MLU and it was fab.
So quiet and relaxed, I had a normal delivery room, pool room, bathroom, bedroom and a midwife all to myself, but also they didn't bug me either which was nice, I felt no pressure about anything I wanted to do, took my laptop in and played whatever music I wanted, had lights on or off or dimmed if I wanted, could go outside and walk around if I felt like it etc etc.
They were lovely once i'd had her too, offered us all tea and toast and made me go and have a nice relaxing bath after i'd fed DD, and let me go home two hours later. :)
Originally I wanted a home birth but really wanted a pool so it was nice going from home to somewhere that I felt at home anyway. I couldn't have asked for a better labour and birth, and hope that I can do the same again this time.
Obviously i'm a bit biased as have never had the hospital experience, but I can't imagine it would have been as nice as that. :)

Whatever you choose though I hope it goes very well for you :)

monkeymoma · 02/06/2012 20:10

also, ask what happens if you do get transferred and need to be kept in, can you stay in THAT post natal ward or do you get booted back to "your" MLU like I was

I was too poorly to go home, I could barely stand, was having blood transfusions and a PILE of drugs, plus feeding was not established. But although you get an ambulance from MLU to hospital, you have to sort your own transport back to MLU, so on the one hand they were telling me I had to stay in hospital (not gonna argue, was too week and ill to go home) and then they chuch you out and had to have a very scary taxi ride back to the MLU's post natal ward where the MWs treated me like a woman who had just has a normal MLU birth, not the very unwell woman that I was

RedHotPokers · 02/06/2012 20:11

I had both my DCs in a MLU with no consultants.
The main reason for doing so with DS1 was that I had a real dread of staying on a ward (silly I know!), and wanted the option of my DH staying with you. Also, local hospital is ancient and quite miserable looking, whereas MLU is all Bupa-ish [shallow].

I loved the experience both times, and and was very lucky to have good births. I had a water birth with DC1, and there was no problem of available pools like there are in the main hospitals. The MWs were lovely, DH was able to stay overnight, I had my own room and bathroom, and most importantly it was a relaxing and quiet (non-busy) environment. I would recommend it.

The downsides were: I was really left on my own overnight - not a huge problem as my DH was with me - but there were a few times when we needed something and DH was wandering the corridors with not a soul to be found! Plus I had placenta-removal issues with both DCs, which nearly resulted in being rushed to nearest hospital. Luckily MW skill sorted it out both times at the eleventh hour!

I'd recommend it.

PogoBob · 02/06/2012 20:25

I had DD at a MLU attached to a large hospital, the facilities where fab and I had a midwife totally to myself and a second that came in just before DD was actually born. I did need to go to theatre afterwards for repairs to a pretty serious internal tear that the midwife wasn't confident about stitching.

Am pregnant again and have moved house, the local MLU is stand alone. My worry is that if I tear this time around I would have a 20 minute transfer to the same hospital or would have a midwife 'doing her best' and potentially leaving me with complications afterwards (no disrespect to the midwife).

There is a lot of demand for the MLU at the hospital so suspect my choice will be the local MLU or the consultant led ward. We live in the middle of nowhere now so no sure how confident I am about a home birth. I not a fan of stand alone MLU for the various reasons already given by others.