Antenatal experience at Portland Hospital vs. NHS

[ThatBlueBee]

I am 8 weeks pregnant, and have had the first midwife and obstetrician appointments in an NHS hospital and I suffer from tokophobia. I came away deeply upset about the experience, and I'm now dreading the next appointments. I am being seen in a hospital that takes 1h30 to travel to on public transport, the receptionists at every step were rude and forgot about me - I waited over an hour each for blood tests, diagnostic and the midwife appointment. I have a stressful job where I do manage my own schedule, but it's not realistic to take 2 days out every month for hospital appointments.

For those who have had antenatal care in the Portland Hospital, is it a different experience in terms of the way you are treated and the efficiency of being seen for each appointment? What are the differences during the pregnancy that would make it worthwhile for me to pay for out of pocket? Are you seen each time by your chosen Consultant, or midwives?

Thank you!

I did midwife led delivery with my 1st and currently consultant led for no.2. The main difference for me was that I absolutely trusted the midwives (and now my consultant). I had a great/quick delivery 1st time round - I think largely because I felt safe and I didn’t have to worry about advocating for myself.
With midwife led they do all your appointments (apart from one consultation with a consultant later on) and with consultant led it’s all with the named consultant. I’ve had a complicated road so far - the NHS were totally useless (suggested a huge bright red bleed that was all over my feet/floor was implantation bleeding - it was not - and told me I’d have to “play it by ear” when I asked if I should be prescribed progesterone). My experience with the Portland could not be more different.
I went with the Portland 1st time round because as a self-employed professional I couldn’t spend hours on end waiting to be seen, and it also meant I could schedule appointments for times that suited me.

There’s also the option of private midwives. I had all my antenatal care at home at a time that suited me. Just went in for ultrasounds but you can also go private for them if you like.