"Maternity Care / Induction"

I recently had an induction at QEUH and would like to thank all the staff involved in making it a positive experience. We were very fortunate that the labour suite was able to take me within an hour or so after attending to have the balloon removed which is exceptionally rare. Special thanks to midwives Jen, Rachel and Alex and student midwife Erin from the labour ward and midwives Michaela, Gillian and student midwife Grace from ward 47. All members of staff were fantastic but these ladies are the ones who stand out the most when we think back to our time in QEUH. 

My pregnancy was affected by a high risk of one of the trisomies after the 12 week scan and subsequent increased monitoring due to low papp-a hormone. I had excellent care from Dr Rutherford, the midwives in the outpatient department and the sonographers. Lee Ann is a true gem in the ultrasound department and I was luckily enough to have her scan me a few times and always left feeling reassured and calm. 

Our community midwife was Jura and she was outstanding in her care, especially after we came home with our daughter - Jura was calm, knowledgeable and helped us get back on track with breast feeding. 

One thing that I would have liked to have been different about my pregnancy journey was the news of the high risk of the baby being affected by a trisomy. I understand that high chance is more than 1 in 150 chance and you’re asked how you would like to be informed should you return a high chance result. However, I do think there should be a separate pathway for those who return a very high chance result, for example above 1 in 5 or 10, where it is ensured there is a same day appointment available in the foetal medicine department to have further discussion and consider further testing options.

I received the news of being very high chance by phone on a Thursday morning while at work (and my partner was at work elsewhere) and initially was offered an appointment early the following week. Luckily, we were able to be squeezed in the following day as I really couldn't face a delay over a weekend. Having thought back over my experience, it would have made it better to have had a phone call inviting myself and my partner to a same day appointment to discuss the combined screening test result further, and then been told during the appointment the specific risk that had been predicted as it would have allowed us to be together and have the advice/support of the fetal medicine expert team there and then.

Instead, I had to pass all my colleagues as I left my work distraught and then contact my partner by phone to pass on the information then wait for him to drive home. The staff in the fetal medicine department were great when we met them but I would welcome a change in practice for delivering the news of an extremely high chance result/ensuring expectant parents can be seen the same day.