Cardiff & Vale University Hospital - anyone given birth there recently?

[gingerninja85]

Hi all,

Im far to early on (6+3) to be thinking about this but Ive just discovered my local hospital (Llandough) doesnt have a maternity ward which was a huge surprise as I was looking forward to be going there. I will have to give birth in the Heath and was wondering if anyone has any experiences of it. I've never heard good things about the Heath!

TIA

[lumpydaisy]

I am actually thinking of transferring to the Heath from outside the area! Used to live in Cardiff and work in the Heath, and it's a much more familiar environment than my local hospital - and I keep being told by people who've had babies at both that the Heath is definitely the better option!

[Nelbert19]

I’m due at end of July so will keep you posted!

[treetf]

I have given birth there twice. I couldn't fault the midwives who delivered my babies - especially my first, I didn't fully appreciate her at the time but looking back she was fantastic.
Postnatal was hit and miss, but I believe that women are unsupported after birth in most places.
If you're having scans/consultant apt's at llandough then take a book or fully charged phone as certainly pre covid they used to run hours behind.

[UHWINFO]

Excuse the crude name change

[UHWINFO]

Ok, that worked.

It's important to understand what your options are and, as such what your comparing things to. I have given birth in UHW twice, once when actually living in Cardiff and more recently when I was living in Merthyr Tydfil. As you may have read, Cwm Taf Health maternity services are in the middle of an enquiry due to a number of possibly preventable infant deaths. So for me, having experience of UHW and knowing the alternative was a service in special measures, it was a no brainer to give birth in UHW.

I was only allowed to transfer my maternity care there due to having an underlying condition which needed specialist treatment in the Heath. Just as a taster of my experience, I rang my specialist in the heath and the midwife team in cwm taf the same day to advise them I was pregnant. I had an appointment in the Heath before anyone in Cwm Taf even bothered to ring me back. This was a lucky as it turned out I was 14 weeks at that appointment.

People can have bad birth experiences but it's necessary to unpick whether it was bad because of the care or the circumstances around the birth. My experience of the Heath is that I felt listened to and they were proactive. Friends who have given birth in Prince Charles felt ignored.

[chloeyaj]

Not much help but I gave birth here in 2015, and will again this October. The birth which resulted in an emergency section was fantastic, midwives, nurses everyone was amazing. Aftercare was pretty awful. I don't blame them as it seemed they were understaffed but my son was placed in Neonatal and nobody could take me down to see him until 2am, he was born at 4pm the previous day and I had not seen him until this time. It was torture not knowing how he was, nobody could tell me if he was alive or unwell etc but apart from that it was great. The midwives were so lovely.

[gingerninja85]

Thanks all, this was very insightful. Ive done a bit more research since posting and it looks as though they had a refurb some years ago and since then everything is far better. Not so worried now :)

[Loubell19]

Hiya why dont you join 'all wales antenatal education and support group' on facebook. Theres up to date info posted on there by the local midwives and lots of positive birth experiences and support :) x

[gingerninja85]

@loubell19 Excellent advice! I didnt realise such a thing estisted.. going to look for it now :) x

[gingerninja85]

existed*