"I went into St Helier on 24 Oct to be..."

What I liked

I went into St Helier on 24 Oct to be induced with my first baby. From the very beginning, I was very impressed with the level of care and support that I received. I ended up staying in the hospital for almost a week due to issues surrounding the birth and the health of the baby. I spent time on the Maternity, Labour and Neonatal Units and everyone I dealt with showed a high level of professionalism and a dedication to their roles that is to be commended. The midwives on the Maternity ward, although obviously stretched in what is a very busy unit, were never to busy to listen to concerns and to offer assistance. The staff in the Neonatal Unit treated our son as if he were family, and made what was a very stressful time for us, much easier. The operating team on the Labour Ward were efficient and proactive. They also showed compassion by making sure that following the caesarian section, while my son was being checked by the paediatrician, I was kept fully updated as to his wellbeing and what was being done in the theatre.

I would also like to mention that the community midwives that I saw throughout my pregnancy were all friendly, efficient and competent. Overall I am thoroughly impressed with the service provided by St Helier Hospital and intend to have my next child there.

What could be improved

Parking charges - I appreciate that the Trust requires income and that parking makes up some of this. However, I do feel that spouses/partners of patients who are in the Maternity Unit should receive a discounted rate due to the amount of time they spend at the hospital. If my husband came in the morning and then needed to leave the hospital to collect items for me and my son, he had to pay the daiy rate and then pay again for the second lot of hours, which on one occasion meant he was charged £21 for parking on one day.

The parking payment machines were regularly out of service and would not take consecutive notes, which meant that my husband had to try to find staff to let him out of the carpark at 10pm.

We were also not notified that because our baby spent time on the Neonatal Unit, we could have received a discounted rate for the week.

In total, for a stay of 6 days, we estimate that we had to spend £70 on carparking.

Anything else?

I'd like to thank everyone.