antenatal... which hospital?

[ITmum81]

hi all,
i am booked for first appointment at st thomas (30 minutes driving from home) and Whittington in Highgate (10m). can i do both appointments and then choose the hospital for subsequent care? will NHS realise it?

reviews for both are good but whittington doesn't have intensive care unit but, apparently, offers a less crowded service (less changes in MW). any suggestion? should i stay closer to home? its my first baby so its all new.

Would you be choosing your hospital based on your 1hr booking appointment which is all form filling, blood taking etc? You will end up having your bloods taken twice so your Gp will know, yes. The problem is that the person you see at booking may not be the midwife you see all the time - as the midwife may take holiday, be on training etc.

Go to the closer one - half an hour is a long drive when you are in labour, especially when you could just go to a good hosp down the road. You're more likely to need the quieter ward and attentive mw than intensive care if all your screening tests go well. If you need intensive care, I'm sure they have a procedure to follow.

Don't take up both hospitals/ midwives time, resources are so tight in the nhs. In any case, you can't tell from a booking appointment.

Stick to one hospital. It will get too complicated otherwise. Who said the Whittington doesn't have intensive care? I think they take babies from 26 weeks there. DS2 was on NICU there. And they do have adult icu too I'm sure. Any hospital can separate you from baby. It depends on demand for different kinds of NICU beds nationally. Btw, the Whittington is bloody amazing. I've had wonderful care there: 2 DCs, one MC and now 32 weeks. Never heard anyone say anything bad about the care. There are the usual gripes about post natal, but I've still chosen it yet again.

ok, many thanks for your messages. we have decided to go to Whittington hospital :)

There's no way I'd go to St Thomas' if I was in Highgate, UCH would make more sense if you wanted an alternative to the Whittington.

I had my daughter at the Whittington last year, it was fine. They definitely have a NICU.

The Whittington does have intensive care and it is crowded. The postnatal ward is 24 bays plus partners can stay so very busy! I guess that's typical for London though. And I never saw the same midwife twice but not a problem. Had DS there last autumn

I meant the ward / midwife service is busy not intensive care, sorry!
Agree with PP if you live near the Whittington there are nearer alternatives than St Thomas.