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Original poster

Help & advice regarding the portland hospital please

92 replies

mommyof41986 · 08/03/2015 19:03

hi my step daughter is pregnant & she would like to go private at the portland.
we live quite a way from london (Gloucestershire). are there any rules about how far away u live? if it comes to it we would relocate to london for a few weeks closer to the birth.
she would like to give birth vaginally
any advice on choosing a consultant (if needed)
anything we should know? she is 17
thank you

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Chchchchanging · 08/03/2015 19:21

I think the key thing to determine is whether it's the Portland or simply peivate she'd prefer- and why
There will be closer private hospitals who will probably have similar facilities
Whilst Portland is brilliant for straightforward delivery if you have a premmie or sick baby they will be transferred to nhs with specialist services anyway
Also worth factoring in the return journey- fine for straightforward uncomfortable with c section for that distance
Does she have any local mum friends who have delivered privately who may be able to support/ advise?

MissTwister · 08/03/2015 19:32

Its very expensive is all I know! If you need anything other than a basic birth you're looking at tens of thousands of pounds. Unless funds are really good would she want to be thinking about whether to have more pain relief due to cost?

Why does she want to go private?

madbunnygirl · 08/03/2015 19:33

I'm in Gloucestershire - have heard nothing but praise for all 3 of the NHS units here, don't understand why you'd go to all that bother travelling to London and back just to have a baby??

TheSingingMonkey · 08/03/2015 19:45

They do have a PICU, neonatal unit and a SCBU. So your baby won't automatically be transferred out.

Unless of course you can't afford the care or your insurance doesn't cover such possibilities. Make sure you can cover any potential complications OP, for example what if she needed a c-section and a hospital stay.

People from abroad have their babies there so I'm sure you don't live too far! Although yes you would have to relocate, Glos is a bit far to travel if you're in labour.

The women's health physios are good and you get to see them if you give birth there.

Whatabout · 08/03/2015 19:49

Is she 17 weeks or 17 years old? If the later it may be better to have local ongoing support.

bullseyebraces · 08/03/2015 19:50

If she is 17 I would have thought it more beneficial to be plugged into the local specialist support services.

Original poster
mommyof41986 · 08/03/2015 23:08

she is 17 yo and approx 9 weeks pregnant (havent had a scan yet).
she already has great support & will continue to do so.
this is a planned pregnancy with her long term boyfriend. he is 21 & also very supportive (although a little squimish). Both are very mature for their ages
we are thinking she will probably be consultant led as she is quite overweight.
her reasons for wanting to go private are because of the way she has seen me treated in 2 of our counties hospitals & the way she was treated when she had a mc in nov. she feels that if she goes private this will be different.
she will be funding this herself although I have said that her father & I will pay for accommodation if/when we go to london.
she understands that there would be added cost if there are complications & she is fine with this.
I believe she has done a little research & she has said that portland is the only fully private facility.

OP posts:
TheSingingMonkey · 08/03/2015 23:19

OP you do realise this will cost thousands?

What if she needs a c-section or the baby needs extra care or she needs an extended hospital stay? Have you got £1000+++ to factor this in? How on earth at 17 is she self funding?

I'm a nurse and know people who work at the Portland so please don't think I'm just trying to be awkward.

Original poster
mommyof41986 · 08/03/2015 23:44

thesigningmonkey
we have done a rough estimate of approximately £12,000 if she was to require an emcs & a couple additional nights stays is this not enough? I know a consultant would be extra from what ive been told
she has enough inheritance money from her mum so she is very fortunate in that she wont have to worry about money for a long while. even so she has decided that once the baby is in preschool she will go to uni. she is currently at a 6th form centre doing her alevels & she will be provided every possible support both emotional and physical to finishes these.

OP posts:
inamaymaybewrong · 08/03/2015 23:44

Why not at least wait until tge 12 wk scan before planning the birth venue?

Original poster
mommyof41986 · 08/03/2015 23:47

chchchchanging,
from what ive been told if there are serious complications she will be transferred to the princess grace?

OP posts:
Original poster
mommyof41986 · 08/03/2015 23:52

inamaymaybewrong,
stepdaughter would like to have antenatal care asap. at the moment she has had her pregnancy confirmed & that is it.
she will need to be booked in very soon. with nhs u are booked in at 6-8weeks in our area.
also as shes had a previous mc u can probably imagine she is very emotional/worried right now & would like some reassurance. something the nhs have failed to give.

OP posts:
misssmilla1 · 09/03/2015 00:32

If you go private, you should budget for all the care up to birth, and not just the birth itself. For example, if she has her first check up at 9 / 10 weeks and they then do regular follow up and scans every 2-3 weeks, then you might be looking at 500 per visit for the dr and then the actual scan(as I'm assuming the radiology dept is also private) You'll also need to add in the cost of all the usual tests (chromosome tests, amnio etc) and whether there's any specific additional care she'd need, if she's deemed at high risk of miscarriage, based on her history. You also need to consider how you'd get up to London every 2-3 weeks for check ups - both in terms of her time off study and the cost of this. Also worth considering the travel factor and whether she'd be up for it depending on how she feels.

I'd be checking what emergency care, resuscitation etc they have in case of an absolute emergency. I'd also be finding out more about their approach to pregnancy and birth; do they favor all types of birthing methods, or have high c section rates; do they have midwives (and are these extra to the costs above) do you see the same dr / midwife etc each time you go, what's their provision / follow up /monitoring in case of suspected miscarriage.

In my experience, private doesn't always buy you great service and often defaults to the NHS if things get tricky. I'd recommend doing more research on the Portland and also your local maternity units in Glos to get a better feel for both,by a visit or at least a chat over the phone if you can

Roseotto · 09/03/2015 00:36

If she is set on this (and I agree with others it is not necessarily the best course as local facilities/services would have much to recommend them in my view) I would ask if any of the obs doctors at Portland work particularly with younger/teenage mums in their nhs work so you ensure you find someone with due sensitivity and familiarity with the issues (and non judgmental). Then call the secretaries and ask for a meet and greet, these are usually free

Original poster
mommyof41986 · 09/03/2015 00:54

thankyou yes ur right.
portland offer care packages if u have midwife led care
which we will be looking into tomorrow, apparently she may not need consultant led as the cut off is a bmi of over 35 which she is nowhere near
she has 1 mc.
I have first hand experience of 2 of our local maternity units/wards as ive had 4 children myself & I was not impressed at all even by the 'new' womens centre. ive had mcs myself & I find grh particularly horrible in so much that the epu waiting room is directly opposite the ultrasound & consultant rooms. my stepdaughter was also sat in a&e waiting room bleeding & crying in full view of everyone. this in my opinion is not acceptable.
with her studying we need to find out if they offer weekend or evening appointments.
theres lots of things to do. I must say nhs maternity does seem a lot less complicated.
I think the best thing is going to be make a call & have her chat to somebody to find what our next steps should be.

OP posts:
Original poster
mommyof41986 · 09/03/2015 01:05

roseotto, yes I believe she is set on going private. I do not understand why that is a problem?
as for facilities & services I fail to see what they could offer her by just going nhs. surley she would be able to attend groups such as yaps (if she feels the need).
I do know she will be passed onto a health visitor when we return home.
I do not rate the nhs in some areas where we live at all in fact I feel they are failing massively especially in terms of antenatal & postnatal/pediatric care. if she wants the best possible care for her baby then why wouldnt she get it.
she kbows her own mind
I have not heard 1 valid reason why she would be better off in the nhs.
you are right though about the consultant though.
this is what I needed help with as I have no idea how to advise her on choosing a consultant as I was just told who I would have & that was that

OP posts:
Want2bSupermum · 09/03/2015 01:11

I was going to deliver there almost 4 years ago. Budgeted total cost was £20k.

At 17 she should def consider saving her money. It would have worked for me because I have a home in london so wouldn't have to drive far when leaving. I had a CS with DD here in the US. Driving 3 miles home just about killed me a week after the birth. I could not have faced a long drive.

Original poster
mommyof41986 · 09/03/2015 01:22

thankyou want2besupermum
she has plenty of savings in form of a trustfund which she wants to keep for uni
this money will be coming from her inheritance which is managed by her uncle until she ia 21 & he has no problems with her choice.
we would of course be staying in london a minimum of 4 weeks after the birth. she thought 2 weeks originally but when I explained the possibility of a cs she agreed.
we would probably rent a small home nearer the hospital once she finishes her exams. dh & our 2 eldest would stay for work & school but visit wkends & her boyfriend would come with us obviously.

OP posts:
madbunnygirl · 09/03/2015 01:51

The women's centre at GRH is fantastic - you clearly have very high expectations in life!! I've never heard such nonsense about the units falling to meet antenatal care requirements.

I think you are utterly irresponsible in encouraging your step daughter to spend that kind of money on private care she really does not need.

Shame she isn't mature enough to think she's better off finishing her education before having a child as well if it means so much to her. You are allowing your slightly negative attitude to influence a naive and vulnerable young girl.

More money than sense clearly.

Want2bSupermum · 09/03/2015 01:53

What I like about the Portland is that they are able to give you what you want. I wanted to have the choice of having an epidural and I know from my friends who have delivered there this was not a problem at all. Friends who did a NHS birth all have to stomp their feet very hard or have a CS to get an epidural.

Two weeks after the birth is fine. I would think a two month rental would be fine. I would say no to a 1hr drive a week after a CS but after that 2nd week I was fine both times.

Good luck to your DD. She is lucky to have a supportive family and I would have loved to have started my family at a younger age. I'm looking at 35 and trying to figure how to fit in another 2-3.

Shardlakelover · 09/03/2015 02:33

A friend of mine used to work as an obs consultant at the Portland and she didn't have anything good to say about it. In her view it was medically understaffed and she would have felt much safer having a baby in an NHS hospital.

PotteringAlong · 09/03/2015 03:12

Why the Portland? If it's private care she (you?) wants the women's hospital at John Radcliffe in Oxford does private maternity care - is that not closer to you?

PotteringAlong · 09/03/2015 03:14

Or, if it's about individual levels of care have you considered a private midwife or doula and staying within the Nhs?

TheSingingMonkey · 09/03/2015 07:28

Of course you're going to get an epidural at the Portland, you're paying for it. Equally of course you should be able to get one on the NHS, but for lots of reasons this isn't always possible.

There are a lot of agency staff at the Portland, some very good nurses and doctors, but a lot of agency staff.

I agree about being treated badly after a miscarriage, it happened to me also and it seems to be something that happens a lot. Mumsnet were running a campaign about it so don't think it's just your hospital.

Why not consider private options closer to home? As someone suggested the private side of John Radcliffe. You'll have access to top neonatal care also if needed.

£12k may cover it but equally it may not. Have you enough to cover if the baby needs to stay in afterwards? Any potential complications? You could be spending 1000s+++.

Faithope · 09/03/2015 07:41

I agree about the John Radcliffe-I am an NHS patient there and have had two babies there and about to have my 3rd in 4 weeks time. The care I receive from top consultants in the world, is fantastic. They care, they understand my condition and I get the best care. I haven't paid a penny (except NI contributions in my working life). I have also had to use their EPAU on more than one occasion and also been well looked after.

To encourage and not discourage a 17 year old, to spend her inheritance on private care is mad in my opinion. She can use that to bring her child up for the next 18+ years. Also it is too early to make such huge decisions as she is yet to reach a stage where her pregnancy is safer.