Experience of antenatal care

[1pregnantmum]

Lots of mums say they felt cared for right up until the baby was born then they felt abandoned, but I have now had two children in the last 3 years and have found antenatal care to be shambolic. My trust gives automated communication through an app but to actually speak to a helpful human being is nearly impossible, I was never seen on time for an appointment and when I was seen the consultants never seemed to know quite why I was there.

I know everyone will explain this away as the poor NHS is underfunded, but on an individual level that's just not good enough.

Does anyone else share my experience/agree that antenatal care has become so impersonal now that actually appointments can be a complete waste of your time and the professional's time?

One example - I had a growth scan and was referred for a screening scan. The screening scan referral sat waiting for action in my app, and I was given another growth scan and consultant appointment. I went to these and they said 'oh we really need that screening scan before we can comment'. What a waste of everyone's time. This is one example of many!

26+2 weeks here. Yup at my last midwife appointment it was like she had forgotten all about me. Didn't know my name, my due date, my pregnancy risk level, my address. Bear in mind she has seen me at least 4 times previously. Don't even get me started on hospital appointments. I average a 5 hour wait most times I go for a scan or a consultants appointment. Given hardly any information or advice. I dont feel listened to and generally frustrated by the whole process. It's been the strangest experience of my life. I can only hope that when I give birth that the team are a bit more communicative and supportive.

I had one (important) set of bloods taken FOUR TIMES, because the first three were lost, then not tested in time, then the MW spelt my name wrong on the label so they refused to process them.

We have Badger Notes in our area, but even so at least 5 mins of every MW appointment after a scan (complicated pregnancy, so I had a few) was spent with the MW copying info from the scan report into their own system.

I’m in the ‘the NHS needs a kick up the arse as well as money’ camp.

I think you’ll find some areas do provide more personalised and seamless care but think they just get overwhelmed with the workload sometimes. I very much doubt you’re waiting 5 hours as the doctor is sitting having a cup of tea, let alone even had chance for a lunch break by 5pm. If your midwife has a caseload of 100+ it’s hard for her to remember everyone, yes ideally she would review your notes before the appointment. Be mindful though that she might be given ridiculously short appointment slots where there is barely time to get the blood pressure cuff on and off you. It is rubbish but it isn’t the fault of the staff and put those same staff in a different context and they would give ‘amazing’ care and make far fewer mistakes. I would say in our area the care is much better than that generally

Is rubbish she is having to fit in the extra admin (in our trust would be done by the sonographers straight into badger) if she wasn’t she may not have been so rushed filling out the blood bottle 😵‍💫 appointment lengths have stayed the same over the years but the amount of things which need to be done in that time has more than doubled