"Health Visiting Advice"

During my first year as a first time mum, I have became aware of the lack of consistency within the Trusts Health Visiting Service.

Whilst my home visit experiences have generally been positive, it does concern me that the range of advice being given to NI Mothers can be so varied depending on the specific Health Visitor.

I appreciate the circle of mum friends and family members I have to reply on for support, however it is within this circle that I have learned that we are all being told different approaches to raising our children. This is within trusts, not just across trusts.

My child is thankfully developing very well and the advice I have been given isn't significant enough to drastically impact him, however I am concerned for other mothers, who have more pressing worries about their child and are reliant on the luck of the draw as to what advice they'll get based on which health visitor they are assigned to.

This recent experience has left me feeling uneasy and doubting the way I am raising my child. It was only when I confided in other mums that I realised that what I was doing wasn't necessarily wrong, it was just another way. It also has made me feel angry that other mums aren't being told the same as well, so how is that fair. It causes unnecessary wavering of our decisions as mothers.

I ask that health visiting services re visit the information they are sharing to ensure that a mother is getting the same information as the mother up the road. I am happy to provide further, more specific information if desired.