Women's experiences of High Risk Care - Antenatal Advice

[MrsMac1489]

Hello Lovely people 💕

I'm a midwife working the the UK.

I am putting together a training package, to devise a antenatal class geared towards "high risk" women.

Women who know they will be having or have had their babies on delivery suite/Labour Ward.

We want to know:

• what we could do to prepare you for the experience of high intervention care?
• what shocked or surprised you?
• is too much information a bad thing, or would you rather be prepared?
• Do you have any burning questions about your care that you don't feel confident to ask?

If you're a birth partner you can help too! We'd like information from both sides.

Also, we'd like to know:

• how you perceive your stay in hospital, was it a shock to be an impatient?
• Did you know how long you might have to stay in after having your baby? Or during the induction process?

Please, no naming of the hospitals or specific midwives or doctors. Anonymity will be respected.

Thank you so much for all your help 💕

Hi Op,

What a great idea! Anything that improves care and more importantly communication will be a great resource.

• what we could do to prepare you for the experience of high intervention care?
Explain exactly what high intervention care means and how it differs to routine or low risk care; including who to expect to see? How regularly? What will each person do? Who has ultimate responsibility? Maybe some case studies? Or experienced written by previous patients?

• what shocked or surprised you?
Lack of communication/assumptions that patients understand what each person is there to do/ should be doing/ when they’ll be back. Being left alone for a long time with no idea when you’ll see someone again is scary, particularly when you’ve been told you’re ‘high risk’

• is too much information a bad thing, or would you rather be prepared?
Definitely not a bad thing; the more information the better; especially from reputable sources.

• Do you have any burning questions about your care that you don't feel confident to ask?
I think an FAQ’s list might be good; as some questions seem little / trivial and doctors always seem so busy; knowing who to talk to and when is appropriate to do so- eg during ward rounds questions are not seemingly encouraged, but the patient might think having lots of people there makes it an ideal time!
Midwives seem to defer to doctors to make decisions but you rarely actually see a doctor so worries escalate. It is often a case of ‘you don’t realise what you don’t know!’

Hope that’s helpful- sorry it’s long!

OP I think you need to rephrase your questions as high risk isn't equal to high intervention care.

I have friends' and acquaintances who were categorised as high risk but had straight forward vaginal births. The biggest annoyances for them was not being allowed water births, and being told they had to be induced but having no bed space for them until they went into labour naturally.

On the other hand I have family, friends and acquaintances who were categorised as low risk and ended having lots of interventions leading to emergency c-sections.

I have twins so automatically high risk. Because they were my second pregnancy I was offered no antenatal classes at all, having had a normal delivery before. I was supposed to see a consultant but the only time I saw one she said "have a caesarean" and that was pretty much it. They were born normally, 6 weeks premature, and went to scbu and I had absolutely no idea why, the possibility of this happening was never discussed. It was only after a few months it clicked why they actually went to scbu! My appointment to make my birth plan was scheduled for two weeks after they were born. I don't think this answers any of your questions does it 🙈 but I would definitely like to have had more information.

I have gestational diabetes, bipolar disorder and obstetric cholestasis. I'm 35+5. Booked for induction at 37+3. I've had two inpatient stays in the third trimester due to derranged liver results. Currently on daily obs and CTG, weekly bloods (this was every other day bloods until recently). Happy to help once baby arrives. FTM.