"wonderful"

What I liked

I am writing to express our gratitude and thanks to the Fetal Medicine Unit team at St George’s Hospital. At present I am 33 weeks pregnant. I was referred to the care of this team from 22 weeks due to an incompatible antibody in my blood which is threatening the baby’s survival. So far, so good and the baby is hanging in there – a situation which is entirely down to the capable hands of your Fetal Medicine Team. Our journey with this pregnancy is clearly still ongoing, but we feel compelled to write and acknowledge the supervision and vigilance of this wonderful team now, rather than platitudes only being expressed later based on what we pray will be a positive conclusion.

Irrespective of the outcome, the care has been world class and should be acknowledged.

From the referral onwards, we have received nothing but first class attention; vigilant monitoring, concerns allayed, reassurances delivered, expectations managed, phone-calls returned and access to sophisticated technology allowing for the phenomenal life-saving procedures. All of this has been within a tone and environment of absolute care and empathy – with a quiet support that no concern we may have is either irrational or neurotic.

Every step of the way, the process has been explained at an appropriate level for our comprehension – with enough detail to feel we have had adequate understanding and control, but without being bombarded by unnecessary, overwhelming detail.

The monitoring has involved countless blood tests, scans and measurements – all of which require incredible attention to detail, with no room for administrational hiccups. And I’m delighted to report there have been none.....

Anything else?

....More recently, our baby has been the recipient of two intrauterine blood transfusions which, quite simply, have kept it surviving. Led with proficiency and composure by the Consultant, this is a procedure which needs to be so accurate it’s somewhat incomprehensible to us, and yet he and his team offer the comfort required to make it feel almost routine.

It seems wrong to pick out any individuals in what is clearly a team effort – but the Consultant and close menbers of his team, are consistently at the heart of this care and as such I want to mention them for specific thanks and recognition.

Please excuse the superlatives, but frankly some situations require them. We have been quite humbled by our experiences and, being in first hand receipt of this team’s expertise and care, frequently reminded that this preservation and introduction of life is what a ‘proper’ job entails.