Hospital has no capacity for sections

[Roto]

My first baby was delivered by Cat 1 emergency section 2 years ago.

I'd hoped for a VBAC this time, but my consultant team have been clear throughout that I'd have a section booked for 37 weeks, and one for 40 weeks, and we would decide at 36 weeks which was the best option.

This week, I was advised that a VBAC is now very unlikely to succeed for a couple of reasons. I saw a different consultant, who said she was happy to leave the section for 40 weeks but couldn't explain why the advice had changed.

Today I've been told that my consultant team and midwife actually agree that the section should be at 37 weeks, but there are no slots, so it's been booked for 39+5 and they'll "try" to move it forward if slots become available, but there's no telling if they will, or how much notice I'd get to sort childcare etc.

I feel very odd about this. I know 39 weeks is usually considered fine, but she's already very big, with reduced movements and a dodgy placenta, and I am struggling both physically with awful PGP and mentally with a combination of bipolar and trauma. Another 18 days feels like a long time.

I thought you had been told to go for a VBAC for your mental health?!

Slots do become free as women do go into labour before their ELCS date and have an unplanned section instead. That said, they can't be guaranteed but as there is now a clinical need to deliver your baby earlier then you should be a high priority to be given a slot.

Are you having regular monitoring of your baby considering they think your baby needs to be delivered at 37 weeks but there is no capacity?

Definitely keep reporting any reduced movements as if you have 2 or more episodes of reduced movements in my trust (the number of episodes does vary between trusts) after 37 weeks then it is routine that induction or C section is offered. You would be admitted to the antenatal ward and have to wait for a slot in theatre to become available for an EMCS Cat 3.

In terms of childcare, can you have someone on a sort of standby?

Sounds very stressful for you, hope you don't have long to wait before you meet your little one!

I was, but they changed it all earlier this week due to placenta issues and babies size. It’s been a lot to get my head around…

@Nursemumma92 Thank you. Standby is difficult because we’re relying on friends… our most likely option is an air hostess; for example, but she’s not available all the time. Our backup can take time off but needs at least a days notice. Otherwise it’ll be me doing it by myself, but I’ve been told that’s really uncommon in my hospital now and they don’t recommend it as staffing has been matched to the fact they everyone seems to bring someone.

I’ve got a weekly clinic appointment for a Doppler check but I’m not on a monitoring plan yet. It was every other day with my son so I presume it’ll be the same but they keep apologising for being over capacity.

I was in a similar situation last year. DD2 was breech position but due to Easter weekend bank holidays, there were no slots available until 39+5. They just booked it for the soonest available slot and checked each day for me for if there were any ELCS slots becoming available. I was developing preeclampsia so i has every monitoring every other day and able to ask each time, so if you arent being seen that regularly, maybe you could call and check? Obviously they also told me to just come to the hospital at the first sign of labour and they would do it then. I did in fact go into labour before the date and did exactly as I was told - straight to hospital once contractions started. In the end, I didnt need the section as baby had turned at somewhere inbetween 39+1 and 39+3 so i opted not to have the section, but they were all prepared to do the ELCS for me. I'm in London so maybe it's different here because family networks don't tend to be as prevalent, but loads of people i know were planning to do their second birth on their own. DH only made it to DD2s birth with 45mins to spare after waiting for our family member to arrive - in the end the traffic was so bad that nursery opened before she got to us, so we just dropped DD1 off for the day and aimed to sort something during the day!