"We are in awe at the extremely high standard of care"

I was admitted to ward 119 at the RIE to have my labour induced on a Monday afternoon in mid May. The Propess pessary was inserted for 24 hours however unfortunately it didn't start active labour.

I was told that my waters could be artificially broken however due to the labour ward being very busy, it may not be until the following morning. At approx. 12:30am (having had only 1 hour of sleep) I was told that labour ward had space for me so I was transferred. My waters were broken by midwife Danielle at approx. 3am, however unfortunately this also didn't lead to my labour starting naturally, so an Oxytocin drip was started at 8am.

I and my baby were monitored continuously by midwife Rachel and her student Lizzy throughout the day as I went into active labour and started to get very strong contractions that made me feel the urge to push. Rachel assessed me at around noon and I was very disappointed to find out that I was only 4cm dilated. I was completely exhausted by this point (especially having not slept much the 2 nights prior), my heart rate went up and I began vomiting and shaking violently.

My midwives took excellent care of me and allowed me to rest in between the strong contractions until the Anaesthetist Julia arrived to administer an epidural upon my request. Julia and the midwives calmly explained every step of the procedure and made sure that I was totally comfortable whilst it was being done, and I was so impressed with their level of expertise and how well they worked together.

The epidural gave my body much needed respite, however there were still some concerns about the position of my baby, leading to interventions from Rachel and an Obstetrician for possible forewaters around baby's head. My shaking and vomiting continued; I was dipping in and out of consciousness and by the evening, my and my baby's heart rates went up and an emergency buzzer was pulled because Rachel thought that there may have been cord presentation. Consultant Obstetricians Dr Thyne and Dr Brown came rushing in, and Dr Thyne established that thankfully there was no cord presentation, but that my baby was facing the wrong way.

Camille very calmly explained to me and my husband that they were worried about mine and my baby's ongoing high heart rates and that I likely had an infection, and therefore they needed to prep me for a possible emergency C-section if the baby could not first be delivered vaginally. They prepped us for theatre and Julia the Anaesthetist topped up my epidural.

In theatre, Drs's Thyne and Brown worked together with their team to examine me again and were able to successfully turn my baby and delivered her safely with forceps (they even managed to do it without a tear/episiotomy!).

Following this, I was transferred to recovery and HDU briefly, while my heart rate continued to be high, and then eventually back to ward 119. I stayed on ward 119 until I was discharged on the Friday afternoon.

Throughout my emergency, every member of staff ensured that I was well informed about everything that was happening (thankfully I was alert again by then) and I was once again blown away at how well they all worked with each other and their levels of expertise- seeing this ultimately made me feel safe and confident, during a very scary and uncertain time.

Afterwards, Dr's Brown and Thyne individually spoke to me to explain what had happened and answered any questions I had. Dr Thyne actually visited me 2-3 further times before I was discharged, and I was so impressed by her enduring kindness, compassion and clear communication throughout- she's a real gem.

Other staff members that took excellent care of me included:

- Ward 119 ante-natal midwives Gemma, Jodie, Serena.

- Labour ward midwives Danielle, Annabel.

- HDU midwife Alison.

- Ward 119 post-natal midwives Lauren and Caroline, as well as breastfeeding research/support midwife Claire. Infant support worker Linda.

Special mentions need to be made for midwife Rachel and her student Lizzy, who took such excellent care of me throughout my long active labour, and they even stayed on past their shifts to see my baby being born. Their care, professionalism and expertise throughout made me and my husband feel confident in their abilities, and as calm as possible throughout. We both reflected that we at times felt worried about the situation and can easily imagine becoming distressed without the explanations from the staff, and the constant reassurance they provided.

Overall, we are in awe at the extremely high standard of care we received at the RIE maternity unit- especially when it mattered most. We will forever be grateful to all the wonderful staff involved in delivering our baby girl safely.

Thank you.