Share your maternity care experiences with CQC - £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED

[EllieMumsnet]

We are working with CQC (Care Quality Commission), who through a current campaign #yourbirthplan would like to make the public more aware of their inspection reports and ratings which can help women make informed decisions about where they give birth. With this aim in mind, they would like to hear your experiences of maternity care.

Here’s what CQC have to say: ‘’While women may have the choice to have their baby at home, in a midwife led unit or in hospital – we know that many are not aware. We believe that all women should be fully informed about the options they have regarding their choices over where they give birth – it is important that expectant parents are fully informed about the options they have available to them throughout their pregnancy and understand the benefits and potential risks of any choice they make – be this at home, hospital or birth centre.

There are multiple sources of information to help make a decision and our aim is to raise awareness including our inspection reports and ratings – as one of these sources, to help ensure they are fully informed of all the options available to them and have the best possible birth experience.”

Perhaps you want to share your experience of maternity care in hospital? Maybe you gave birth at home or in a midwife led unit? Or perhaps you want to tell us about your experience of how you chose where you gave birth?

Whatever your experiences are, share them on the thread below and everyone who comments will be entered into a prize draw, where one lucky winner will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

The CQC is responsible for inspecting all hospitals, including private hospitals, GP practice, dentists, care homes and home care in England. Its maternity service inspections include all services for women that relate to pregnancy, including ante and post-natal services, labour wards, birth centres or units and theatres providing obstetric related surgery.

Each inspection answers five key questions: Is the service safe? Is it effective? Are the staff caring and responsive to people’s needs and is the service well led?

Community midwife was great but birth experience wasn't.

I'd wanted a home birth but was told the consultant needed to agree it. He spoke to DH rather than me, and told him that if it was his wife he wouldn't allow it!

Midwives didn't believe I was in labour as I wasn't making enough noise, then moaned when I insisted on coming in(DS born 20 mins later).

Consent issues with the midwives who treated me like a child and not a fully functioning adult.

No post natal care and the ward had the radiators on ( on the hottest day of the year). Midwives said they couldn't turn them off. One call to the trust press office sorted that ( I'm public sector and offered to tell the story to the Mail who love a NHS incompetency story).

Wouldn't discharge us for hours and toilets were filthy! No other section of NHS would put up with shoddy care.

I didn't have a choice in anything, and I ended up with 4th degree tearing. It was the most painful thing ever. I didn't like any of it and if I could go back I'd pick a water birth.

48 hours labour, that's why we have the one child lol.

I had brilliant care. My daughter was 7 weeks early and I was very sick from the medication they gave me. My husbands family all kept coming and wouldn't leave. I couldn't stop throwing up and just wanted to be asleep. It was like the nurses could tell without me asking and made everyone leave. I was so thankful! Xx

I had a hospital birth, and my care prior to the birth, and the birth itself was fantastic. However, after my son was born, one particular midwife was very hostile towards me because I was having difficulty breastfeeding. She even bottle fed my son without permission, which made it even more difficult to get him to breastfeed. She also told me she wouldn't let me leave hospital unless I bottle fed him! Absolutely awful.

Just Had my beautiful boy in March 2017. Was all set for a water birth in my local Midwife led maternity hospital. My waters broke at 11.15 on the Friday and I made my way to hospital at 9am on the Saturday. I was advised that I would have to deliver by 11.15pm on the Saturday night or will have to be transferred to another Maternity hospital.

The Midwife led hospital was like 5 star treatment with a large room to myself with bathroom & shower and a massive birthing bath. The midwives were amazing and couldn't do enough for us to be comfortable. At 3pm I was 6cm dilated and all looked good to go for my water birth however my little chappy had other ideas because my next check at 7pm I was 3cm dilated but the pain was getting worse rather than better , I felt like screaming. Had to be transferred to consultant led hospital because wee man was coming down back to back and needed to turn around quickly.

The midwives again were outstanding and my angel was born at 2.30 Sunday Morning

I had my babies at Bradford Royal Infirmary.
I don't feel I got the care I should have during my first pregnancy. I had high blood pressure, babies growth slowed down, and all the warning signs were there and I was getting checked in a day unit twice a week, however the consultant just kept sending me home with blood pressure medication. My baby died. I gave birth to her sleeping at 22 weeks. I cannot fault the midwives or the hospital really, just this consultant who I think should have read the warning signs and tried to get the situation under control!
Anyway I went on to have my second baby at the same hospital but under a different consultant and this time everything was fine. Still had problems but they kept such a close eye on me and really looked after me, and I had a healthy baby boy!

I had a two great births at the hospital :)

I was fortunate to have a fantastic midwife at both births, however the facilities at the hospital were very basic, fortunately they have now built a new maternity unit

The local maternity hospital was where I gave birth. The staff were all absolutely wonderful, but the hospital itself wasn't in the best condition. It was due to close with a shiny new maternity unit being opened in another hospital to replace it, so NHS weren't going to spend money on providing some much needed redecoration to the rather drab and worn looking environment. If baby came a few weeks later we would have been in the brand new unit.

I went into labour at 34 weeks. I went to my local chosen hospital (a large London teaching hospital) but they sent me to a much smaller hospital far from home, because all their NICU incubators were full. My labour was slowed using drugs.

I believe (but could never prove) that DD's cerebral palsy is due to the slowing of labour and the way her birth was mismanaged at the smaller hospital.

I wish, wish, wish every day I'd insisted on staying at my original hospital. The irony is that DD didn't even need an incubator.

Oh and to add to that, the hospital where I gave birth also (wrongly) told me DD might well have Downs when she was born and (wrongly) told me she didn't have tongue tie. Both of which led to a huge amount of unnecessary stress in the early stages of her life.

All three of my children were early so had no choice but to use my local maternity hospital but they were fantastic and I experienced such great care.

My experiences improved from first child to third as I became more confident what to ask and when I needed help both prenatal, birth and postnatal. I think being an 'experienced' mum seem to gain more respect and I did not feel like I was talked down to or even not taken too seriously.

I had two very differing experiences giving birth. My first child was born in a new wing which looked amazing, however care wasn't that great. They were very busy and had very little time to help the new mums. The second time I was really worried after my hospital tour as it was old, tatty and dinghy looking. I actually had an amazing experience with very caring midwives who couldn't do enough to help. I felt much better this time round (much shorter birth) and obviously was a pro at nappies etc so really didn't need it (although it was very much appreciated)

The post natal ward was busy and understaffed. I was pretty much ignored, presumably because it was my second child so I knew what I was doing. The fact I was immobile because I had a section was not taken into account.

Noone asked about feeding and as a result we were discharged on day 2 and then ended up back in hospital on day 5 for two nights because she was dehydrated and starving herself. That cost the NHS way more than if I had been cared for properly in the first place.

Community team were fab, pre natal care was fab, surgical team were fab. I have concluded that the post natal ward is the shift no-one wants.

My maternity care was many years ago. Could not fault it. I was very poorly and had the best of care.

The information before hand was really good, we had several options to choose from but weren't pushed one way or other, the advice and experience during was very good with the staff very attentive, positive experience.

I had my first child in 2012. It was an awful long labour and I didn't feel that I was listened to or supported particularly well by the staff looking after me. I started off in the midwife led unit of my local hospital but ended up strapped to the bed on a monitor as there were concerns for both me and baby. We were rushed out of the doors within hours of giving birth too even though I was struggling with feeding.

I had my second in 2016 and had a very quick labour where I unfortunately ended up having an unplanned home birth and my husband had to deliver the baby! Funnily enough the support was so much better though, a midwife stayed with me until I was happy to give feeding a go on my own and she even phoned a couple of times in the hours after the birth to check I was still ok. We had more support in general too, I wish I'd been given the same support with my first as it was more needed then!

I had a hospital birth with my fourth child which was quite traumatic as his shoulders got stuck. The staff did manage to free him eventually for which I am grateful but I worry that some of the difficulties he has now may be due to his difficult birth.

I had an ok birth I guess - they were busy and whenever i rung they said ring back later (10 mins apart, 5 mins apart, 3 mins apart, waters break) - my biggest concern was ......I didn't ring them for 15 hours as I fell asleep and this seemed to set me from 5 back to 10 mins and no one rung me to check I was ok!

Hospital care just is not what it used to be. More of my friends are considering home births now.

I had no choice where to give birth as I was counted high risk as I've had quite a few births. Apart from one less good incident with one baby when there were no beds available on the ward for me and I nearly ended up giving birth on the antenatal ward without pain relief and couldn't get anyone's attention, my subsequent births all went really well and there was plenty of room on the ward when I needed it. I could not fault the high level of care I had and the MW was with me most of the time. On the post-delivery ward, it's quite different. I didn't need any help so I was fine, but I felt very sorry for the MW who had far too many new mothers to look after. Really there needed to be far more staff on the ward. Despite that, the MWs still did a fantastic job, but they must have been totally exhausted with the level of work and care they were putting in.

I received great care in hospital when I had DD. I was one week overdue and the midwives monitored me very closely. The midwives in the delivery room with me were amazing, so experienced and instantly put me at ease. The lead midwife coached me through every thing. I can’t fault the care I received

Pretty standard one to be honest, great team of midwives and friendly atmosphere.