Anyone from around Milton Keynes??

[Wonderwitch]

Hello,

I am quite new to Milton Keynes, been here about a year, is there anyone from this area who could let me know about the hospital, services etc?

I am 7 weeks pregnant so I have only been to the doc once for the first booking appointment for being pregnant.

Would be good to get views from other mothers, mum's to be who know the area.

Thank you

Wend xx

Wonderwitch, I live about 20 miles from MK but know it fairly well and know the hospital too. I hate to say this, but I would run a mile from that hospital, absolutely dreadful DREADFUL place. Can you book into a different hospital?

im luton so not too far and im also 7 weeks! my cousin had her ds very early at mk and she thought they were great she also sadly more reecntly had a still birth and i believe that she felt that they handled well there too

madmissy, I'm sorry to hear about your cousin, that's dreadful

Wonderwitch, I feel I ought to qualify my earlier post. My DH was taken to MK by air ambulance a couple of yrs ago after a motorbike crash. He was treated VERY badly, I have a LONG list I could go into. It was so bad we wrote to the health minister and complained directly to the hospital who apologised

yes she was and her ds was sooo tiny he was in the unit for a while he thrived well though.

sorry about your hubby! does he still ride?

no, he's been left with a paralysed arm

It truly was a very traumatic time when he was in MK

oh god thank god hes there to tell the tale sound like it was serious accident. my ex had bikes i loved them but they do scare me as people just are not as aware as they should be

i have had all my children there... and was very well looked after each time...

where ever you post about you will get good and bad stories unfortunately... some people have a good experience and sadly others dont

yes thats true my 1st dd was barnet and they were awful 2nd dd luton and i heard bad about there and they truely were am amazing

people have very different expectations as well.... maybe mine are low

people seem to find it easier to critisise rather than praise... so you here more complaints than compliments..

I have no doubt they are understaffed and pushed to the limit always... but I would hope the midwives do the best they can.. otherwise why would they have chosen that career and trained for all those years (I would love that job)

i hope you have a good experience whatever you decide

Oh wow hello all

Thank you for all your replies xx

HeinzSight I am so sorry to hear about your experience at MK hosp, you poor thing, it must have been horrendous, I know through my own experience even at the same hospital different departments can have widely varying reputations and people can have such different experiences etc.

madmissy your poor cousin, what an awful thing to have to go through, a small blessing she was treated well.

cheekysealion I agree with what you say, everyone is different and it also depends a lot on the staff that are there at the time, I think I am a bit like you, as long as they do what they are supposed to and its clean it will be fine, I don't intend on being in there very long in any case lol

All I don't actually know my choices yet as not got appointment with Midwife for a bit yet,I will discuss this with her and ask if I can visit the choices to get an idea. The only place I have experienced in MK hosp is the A&E through work, I work with adults with learning disabilities and have been a regular visitor there supporting my guys, more often then not during the night.. all night!! and I must say I wasn't impressed, not sure if it was the hosp or the fact it was the person I was supporting..don't get me started on that subject!!! will be here for days gripping about the different treatment they can receive .

Thanks again all of you, any other bits of info on the MK area for me, eg. good places to go, places NOT to go lol
I just want to learn a bit more about the area form the people who know

Hugs
WW or Wend xxXxx

is it your first?
i searched high and low for a birth centre and found none with my 2nd however i had a severe bleed with ruptured placent after my 2nd dd so im terrifeid that will happen again and want to be at hosp so theycan treat me quick if it happens again.

Hi MM

Oh blimey that sounds very scary,and I can understand why you are terrified, all I can say is every pregnancy and labour is different so its prob very unlikely to happen again, have the midwife or doc said anything about it?

No it's not my first, I have a son of 20yrs and a daughter of 18yrs from a previous marriage,quite an age gap, but great for babysitters lol

So in a way coz everything has probably changed so much since then it's a bit like the first again.

Coz of my age I'm wondering if I should be in hosp, but with my other 2 I was so quick, son - 2 and a half hrs and my daughter 8 mins ( yeah really 8 mins lol) not sure if coz been so long that will matter now though, if I should opt for home birth, plenty of time to work that one over though.

Anyone have any views???

dont see why you have to have hospital! how would dp/dh be about a home birth? my dh hates the idea....

with my dd1 i hada horrid 24 hr labour pethidine failed .... failed epidural (yes failed! it came out at about 10 hrs and wld not listen toi me when i kept saying back feels wet)

with dd2 i was induced but had a gas and air birth of 4 hours in total first twinge to her being born and was perfect (other than the bleed after)

so i am wondering what the next will be like lol!

ww you have perfect gap there! must be quite exciting to be doing it all like new!!

MM yeah it is all exciting but scary at the same time, to be honest if I am as quick as before I prob wouldn't make it to hosp anyway, best get my other half enrolled in midwifery classes lol.

We haven't really spoken about it yet but i know he's not keen on home birth, trouble is he my not have a choice lol

Wow 24 hrs with first... exhausting, poor you and ouchhh!!

I had forceps with ds, they gave me pethadine early on in the labour coz I was shaking so much literally from head to toe non stop shaking, so by the time I had forceps it had warn off. all i can say is big OUCH he was round the wrong way ( not breach ) facing the wrong way and I was pushing solid for just over an hr without anything happening.

My dd she shot our so quick I didn't have time for anything at all, the midwife missed her and she nearly done her first bungy jump as I was skew whiff on the bed and she landed right on the edge, looking back its quite funny lol

As you, wonder what this time will bring??... the fastest labour in history??? could land up in the record books lolor I could pay for it for being so quick b4 and have a 2 week long labour lol

Hi WW,

Welcome to sunny MK, I have lived here forever, and think MK has loads to offer!! Hope you are enjoying your new home?

I don't have anything positive to offer re: MK general hospital including the labour ward. But I agree that everyone has either a positive or negative experience. I am due in July with #2 and really want a home birth, due to my terrible exerience. The bonus you have over first timers, is you have an idea of what to expect and can put your foot down if you are not happy with what is going on. So don't be put of having your baby in hospital.

Milton Keynes as a whole has loads of things to offer mums and children. We use our local sure start facilities often and I have met loads of new friends through the various activities. It was a really useful tool to get into a routine too!!

Let me know if I can help with anything else.

CB
x

Hey hello carbooty

Great to meet a fellow MKer

I will def put my foot down if I think that things aren't being done right or I'm not happy, I'm not one of these that just sit back and not say anything... god help em!! lol

Are you on facebook?? would be good to chat on there if you are xx

What is sure start???

Where did you have ur first??

I also would like a home birth may have no choice as my DD was so very quick. my DP definitely doesn't like the idea one bit but I told him I am going to enroll him in midwifery classes just incase lol his face was a picture lol

Hope you ok and things going well

xxXxx

Morning All,

Well I have had my first experience of MK hosp... must say.. I wasn't impressed

I was sent from my GP to the SAU ( surgical assessment unit) as she suspected an ectopic pregnancy..thankfully and a BIG phewwww everything was fine an our ickle Squiggle (our nickname for baby) is in the right place.

I went in and was asked to sit on the bed, so there I waited...and waited eventually a nurse came took a few details and asked me to do a urine sample and said a doc would be round soon. then disappeared, waited...waited... waited etc

The doc came round, she started asking questions, she didn't let me finish answering b4 she asked the next and she was NOT listening to me at all, was to busy being shocked and laughing that I already had an 18 and 20 yr old, then she got called away and said she would be back to finish taking history etc, she never returned.

after wot seemed like a lifetime of being so scared, I asked what was going on as I could see her yakking and laughing at the nurses station, she just said have u been for your scan yet... pardon!!! didn't know I was going for one yet no one has said anything, she then said yeah u have to have a scan, that was it!!

Then bloods were taken.

By this time I was feeling very wobbly and sick and needed to eat, thought I had better ask, was only told then not to eat, so I said if having scan should I drink, was told no it wasn't that type of scan,

Eventually got called in for scan, and I was asked have I been drinking, I said no was told didn't need to, their faces said it all!!!

The scan was brilliant and so was the woman doing the scan, pheww everything fine.

came out, sobbing with relief lol

after a while I asked what was going on again as no one had told me anything and a nurse said I was free to go, no mention of urine or blood results an no info from them on what the pains I was having could be.

Nothing was explained to me, no one really spoke to me or got full history and at one point we heard a nurse say out very loudly, "is anyone here going to take responsibility for these patients" god knows what was going on there, but doesn't give you much confidence in them

Thing is I was so relieved that the scan was good, I just wanted out and to get home so didn't think of demanding to know etc.

Lets just hope that this isn't a sign of things to come at MK hosp's maternity unit.

Wend xx

WW - I'm not near MK now but used to be and I haven't hear great things about mk hospital - sil went to Bedford for her 2nd as she had such a bad experience (don't know the full story but included being discarged too early with complications) and said Bedford was much better - would that be possible for you?

hello newlark

Im not sure of my choices yet, will def ask when I go to first midwife appointment on 27th.

I really would like a home birth if everything goes ok, but my DP is not keen at all, but we will look into that and I will work on him we still have loads of time to decide.

It so hard to know what to do really, as whatever hosp you go to someone has probably had a bad experience and it also depends who you get on shift when you go in, at least if I am at home, I am in control.

Well we will see.

thanks again newlark

xxXxx

Wonderwitch I'm so sorry you had that scare but phew what a relief. I also must add that your experience is indeed very indicative of what DH suffered. I stand firm with my earlier post, run a mile from that place.

Hi HeinzSight

It does look as if you were bang on, but not actually having witnessed the maternity unit, bit unfair to say that they are total crap but I am definitely learning more and more towards a home birth, I personally don't think it would be worth the risk of waiting and finding out on the day I go into labour

I will though ask if I can go an visit my options, if any, and then make a choice and in the meantime keep working on DP with the home birth. lol

Spose the only thing if for whatever reason I need to go in eg, prem birth or complications I need to have a back up plan and that will hopefully be somewhere I trust!! oh the joys of having a baby!!!! lol

Hope you have a brilliant weekend

xx Hugs xx

*Opppps meant leaning.... not learning

WW - Bedford should be doable from MK - why don't you give it a look?
L&D parking a bit rubbish I'm afraid but maybe also worth a look?
Is Northampton possible - maybe you could get some opinions?

Yes, I was thinking have a look at Bedford or Northampton. Northampton is only a junction or 2 on the M1.

you have a good weekend too

Hello. I am based in Grange Park and had DD2 in Northampton and DS1 last Saturday at home.

I have to say that I thought the care I received at Npton hosp. was really good, but I have heard some scare stories about there too. The building and rooms are really crummy, but the MWs were excellent. I chose to have a HB 3rd time around because I wanted to guarantee a water birth and that was the only way to do that because there are no MLUs around here. HBs rock, BTW, so I would absolutely investigate that if it's something you are interested in.

Hope this helps - let me know if you have any more qs about Northampton.