Does house move have to mean hospital move?

[AlwaysDancing1234]

At the end of April we are moving house, new house is 4 miles from the hospital where I have antenatal care and wish to give birth (current house is 1 mile away from hospital). Baby is due end of June.

As we moving further away am I likely to be asked/told to change hospitals or midwife care team etc?

I don't want to change hospitals as it's very good, I had DC1 there so know and trust and we had a rough time with this pregnancy up to 20 weeks (all fine now thankfully) so I want to keep same hospital.

Any views/experiences/knowledge please?!

Nope, you can stay where you are!

its called continuity of care so no you dont have to move..

Phew thank you everyone! It thought it would be fine until A couple of people had scared me by telling me otherwise!

I don't think so.

I live in dorset but am having baby at a Wiltshire hospital. We had our other two there so they have my notes (plus the closer hospital doesn't have the best reputation, and is in Somerset anyway)

We are on the cusp of all 3 counties and I was asked by MW where I wanted to go.

Good luck.

Thank you ohsowhatsoccuring love the name by the way!

Perhaps it depends on your hospital and circumstances, but I have been told (by my midwives) that I will have to change gp surgery and therefore midwife team when I move. Fortunately for me one of the two midwives in each surgery is the same, she travels between them. I imagine hospitals would be different though since 4miles isn't much and you often get some choice about where to give birth. But I'd say check with the mw and hospital in question!

That was true in my bit of London too. If you moved, you had to move surgery. No choice. Don't know if the hospital was different but you would have to change ante natal clinic.

I do want to ask my midwife but will be very very unhappy and anxious if she says I have to move hospitals at this stage (only 3 months to go). I guess I'm just going to have to tell them and fingers crossed I can stay at same hospital

Like whatsoccuring I am on the boundary of 2 counties (W and S Yorkshire), and had both my babies in the one I don't live in - cos it happened to be the closest hospital by far and also an excellent hospital. South Yorks born grandchildren also made FiL very happy. Lots of interaction between my community mw and hospitals on both sides of the border. But we're rural, so maybe more mobility that in dense urban areas.

Also, my nearest hospital is much more than 4 miles away!

And isn't there a big deal about patient choice anyway?

Bikerunski thanks. We are in Central London so 4 miles is quite 'far away' from the hospital compared to most who go there who are within 1 mile! (Having lived in a rural area in my teens I know that classed as a walking distance!)
Thanks to everyone. When I next see midwife I'll have to ask her and get it straight!

ohwhatsoccuring I have a feeling you live near me!

You wont have to move hospitals because you have the choice to give birth wherever you wish.

GP surgery and therefore community midwife might be a different matter but some GPs will offer to keep you on until after the pregnancy. My friend is seeing her old GP even though she lives the other side of the town now. Her GP wants to keep her on until baby is born.

We moved while pregnant with DC2, I got to travel to the same ante natal midwife team (opposite side of the park by our new house), only difference was that I had post natal midwives from the other hospital. It worked fine with DC2.

With DC3 the GP asked me which hospital I wanted as we are in an overlap for 3 hospitals and I asked to stay with the same one. I'd had complications with DC2 which meant a month as an inpatient and this hospital was also convenient for DH work route. Good thing I did as same complication with DC3 resulting in 6 admissions totalling about 6 weeks!

AuditAngel I did have the same thoughts about my hospital. As well as being my preference for birthing unit and postnatal care it's also a lot easier for DH and family to get to should I need to stay in for any reason.
Thanks everyone for sharing your experience/ideas, really appreciate it.

No you wont have to move... especially since you are still very close.