I'm not too impressed with my midwife or the hospital .... are you?

[lollipopmother]

I had my midwife appointment a couple of weeks ago and I wasn't that impressed at all, I felt really on the spot all the time and under pressure, but I thought that was probably me just being an ass.

Yesterday I had a dating scan and it was like a conveyor belt. I wasn't going to mention anything but my partner said afterwards that he was pretty narked because he said it was so impersonal and he was trying to have a moment (haha, soppy git!) but instead they were literally pushing us out the door!

Has anyone else had this, is it normal? I appreciate their busy and as long as they get the job done I don't really mind, but it'd be nice to know if everyone has had the same experiences.

Oh that takes the biscuit, you don't want someone being hard on you, you want someone you feel you can speak to about all your insecurities, maybe you could change?

I will be seeing my midwife again in two weeks and if she's still wierd I'll see what I can do, the last thing I want is to not feel comfortable talking to her.

I felt a bit like that at first but they got a lot better as the appointments went on. I found the closer you were to your due date the nicer they got with you.

Also I assume the scan was the 12 week one? The sonographer who did mine wasn't very nice either. I felt like you - rushed. The 20 week scan was done by a different person (in fact it was on a different floor of the hospital and was with a more senior department - that went for everyone not just mine iyswim) and she was lovely.

I think the hospitals doing scanning are extremely busy.

In general, the problem with the NHS is that the vast majority of staff are fantastic, but most hospitals are understaffed and under resourced and each person has too much to do.

There aren't enough midwives either so they also have too much to do per person.

Yes I think you're probably right Crokky, plus it must be hard for them to give us time as I expect they are working to deadlines where as I could've happily watched the screen for an hour and not be bored!

Nappymad - It was a dating scan because I thought I might as well milk it although I thought I was pretty sure of my dates, as it happens I was 10 days out but that's possible, I've been put back to 10 weeks when I thought I was just over 11, which is poo because that's 1 more week of work I have to go to, haha!

No I didn't have the same experience to be honest. Yes I know scans etc are primarily medical and not just done for us to coo over the baby (unless it's one of those private non-medical ones of course) but even so I did not feel pushed out of the room when I had scan, they did all the medical measurement bits they needed to do first then they showed my and dh the screen and pointed out thing like 'there's the heartbeat, there's the head, there's an arm' on the first one and 'look baby's having a drink' on the second scan. Also she took a couple of moments to get a decent picture to print for us to take away.
Sorry that you had the exprerience that you did. Unfortunately I think sometimes staffing is an issue and the midwife may have been under pressure herself to get through more work than she had time for.

I didnt have the same experiences either. Both hospitals i have experience of have been great, my midwife the first time was a bit useless but the scans and treatment were top notch.

I though you was staying away from here anyway mupper ?

Mummage get out of my thread, it'll mean I don't get to use all my free texts on you, haha!

I was staying away but then I felt really bored at work and I was feeling strong after getting shouted at last night (using oven cleaner once without gloves apparently does NOT worry Daddy one bit and I should stop freaking out!!).

Mine are lovely, I really wamted to stay pregnant last time as I really missed my MW and am enjoying seeing her second time round, hospital is great, and scans take as long as they need, ours was fairly quick as baby cooperating, a friend of mine was an hour as hers wasn't.

Ok i shall ignore virtual you just so you get to exercise your thumb

haha stay away from oven cleaner though, its vile stuff.. last time i did ours ( far longer ago that is respectable ) i felt like someone had set fire to my lungs, i dread to think that damage i caused myself.

Get Dad to do it.. your scan picture raised a smile in jukes, i think he's secretly lookign forward to friday.

we're going to Nandos tonight and then on to see Cloverfield, quite excited actually i feel like i've not left the house for 3 months.

lollipopmother - if it's any comfort the sonographer has probably gone home thinking ' what a crap day, I haven't given anyone enough time, wonder if they noticed ' You often find appts are booked into slots only 2/3 as long as is needed. This is why waiting is as much a part of the NHS experience as blood tests and x-rays. Its very far from ideal - but at least we don't have to pay to suffer Do hope you get longer to look at you lovely lo at 20 weeks. Very sweet about your partner trying to have a 'moment' btw!

All my scans (NHS and private) have felt like that - too many people to be seen, too little time. The 20 week one might be better as it takes a bit longer.

My mw is fabulous though. I could take or leave her last time (moved into the area at around 24 weeks, so didn't really get to know her), but she has been brilliant this time. Very supportive, remembers everything about me and my history, and has done lots of extra home visits, and has seen me pretty much every week.

Ha Northernlurker he'd KILL if he knew others knew of his 'moment', haha but I already ratted him out to my mother because I couldn't help but tell her he thought the baby was waving at him (I conceed that it did move when we were looking, but waving .. it doesn't even have proper arms!!)

oh bless! Better not tell him you've ratted him out to the www then

He's already 'banned' me from these forums because I freak right out whenever I read the bad topics, but today I feel strong enough to just not look in the ones that look bad in the first place, it's amazing how you end up reading all sorts of horrible threads about miscarriage when you really don't want to at all!!

Wow I feel really fortunate - not only was first scan lovely and not rushed, on second one DP couldnt get parked and they WAITED for him, couldnt have been nicer! That's Simpsons in Edinburgh.
Sorry for anyone who was rushed or felt like they were on a conveyor belt, that just sounds so grim

You have to clean ovens???

...

PFJ - No, that's the really irritating thing about it, that oven has NEVER been cleaned, I just did it on a whim one day and now of course I've read that you shouldn't use oven cleaner when you're pregnant, but it's just another thing I'm chalking up on the oooops wall together with eating brie, liver pate, half a bottle of champagne and God knows what else before knowing I was pregnant!

PFJ - No, that's the really irritating thing about it, that oven has NEVER been cleaned, I just did it on a whim one day and now of course I've read that you shouldn't use oven cleaner when you're pregnant, but it's just another thing I'm chalking up on the oooops wall together with eating brie, liver pate, half a bottle of champagne and God knows what else before knowing I was pregnant!

Pah double post, how do you delete?!?!

OOh didn't know that about oven cleaner, I did mine twice over xmas. Was going to do it again before baby was born. Oh well shame I can't!!

My first midwife was crap, the midwife I'm seeing this time is absolutely wonderfull really wish she was going to be there when baby arrives.

Actually our sonographer was great too, really chatty and she spent ages showing us the baby and all his limbs and bones.

Think it just depends on who you get.

I didn't know about the oven cleaner until I saw it last night in one of the many leaflets you get, apparently it's toxic at the best of times, and there's me up to my elbows in it and merrily inhaling away!

Well at the end of the day you rule the roost, if she's still a pain in the arse the next time you see her you can give her the elbow and write a snotty letter of complaint, I certainly will be if I don't feel I'm getting the care I deserve.