Midwife issues

[Wideeyed66]

Hi all,
im 28 weeks pregnant and just looking for other experiences with changing midwives. My pregnancy has not been run of the mill, I started out with a twin ivf pregnancy and then lost one at 10ish weeks, I also have some other risk factors so I’m under consultant led care. My community midwife experience hasn’t been great. In my first appointment she wasn’t that truthful about a requirement to do a drugs test (because I admitted, after some very direct questioning, to some isolated, short term recreational drug use over ten years prior!), I did it as zero to hide but I noticed the write up was different to the convo. She also made heavy weather of mental health things I discussed, even though again, they are not current and I’ve maintained private therapy as a constant as a precaution. Fast forward, I lose one of my twins and was understandably very upset. I notified the midwives as they don’t get updates from the EPU and no one got in touch until my next appointment rolled around. I didn’t think too much of it though felt a bit surprised after them being quite OTT about the old Mental Health matters. Next appointment she’s away on leave, saw a lovely midwife who was much less judgy. I contracted bacterial food poisoning and had reduced movements so she was sent out to check baby’s heart rate around 17/18 weeks, she was pretty huffy about it. Next appointment, she palms me off onto a student and they nearly forget about my glucose test (I’m high risk) until I prompt. Next appointment for glucose test she palms me off again to another student and doesn’t even enter the room or anything this time, and there are no other patients present, and actually the only interaction was she kind of chastised me for being 10 mins early (I didn’t ask to be seen early I was just allowing time for my very slow waddle at the moment!) At this point I just feel like there’s no consistency in my care, and I also find it draining having to completely repeat my history and the miscarriage which is still very raw at every appointment because it’s always someone else. There was also a huge mess up around my screening options related to the miscarriage that was really stressful as I kept being told the wrong info.
im usually super pro the nhs and I understand both that they are busy and that students have to learn but I also feel completely at sea and now honestly dread the appointments.
has anyone changed their community midwife team and how was the request dealt with? I’m nervous to say something, be stuck with her and just make things worse.

Hi OP, it might be different around the country but I never saw the same community midwife twice so was constantly repeating everything.
Also after the birth, had a different health visitor every time

Yes I changed my midwife , no issues at all
So sorry for your loss

That’s interesting thanks, down here they are meant to be the same all the way through barring holidays and that you keep to the proposed scheduling. I think if she hadn’t set the expectation at the beginning I’d be much less annoyed!

I'm sorry for your experience, Op. Roughly where are you based? I'm in the South East and always have the same midwife, unless she's on holiday or sick. Students can be present at appointments but never without my own midwife present, so I think it's a bit odd she leaves the student to get on with your appointments on their own.

In terms of how easy it is to change teams I can't imagine it would be that difficult. In my experience, I work a fair distance from my house and I was offered to change to a different team for ease of appointments but I wanted to keep my original midwife. Where I am there's different midwife teams in each postcode area, obviously some would cover more than one area, but it's worth asking. You still have a way to go and you don't want this to be a miserable experience until the end.