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I didn't meet with the same midwife more than once

Posted By MH19

"I didn't meet with the same midwife more than once"

About: Forth Valley Royal Hospital / Maternity unit

(as a service user),

I have had 2 pregnancies with the Bluebell team in Larbert and have had mixed experiences from one to the other. There have been changes in service provision and structure since my first pregnancy and I don’t feel these changes in service provision made for a positive experience. 

In the first pregnancy I had consistency in the midwives in the community. This allowed for me to build up a relationship with staff and for then to get to know me. Following birth this was so valued, having a familiar face visiting your house at this stressful/vulnerable time was so reassuring. Had there been any worries I’d have felt I could share them. My midwives were amazing throughout this time. 

However, this year the teams have changed which has led to there being inconsistencies in staff. I didn’t meet with same midwife more than once, meaning I had to share story over again and didn’t have any relationships with staff. In one appt I was left waiting for over an hour and in the appt the member of staff didn’t know how clinic run. 

I would like to say that the midwife who I met with at my 40 week review was fantastic, going above and beyond to help and move things forward. 

Following birth every visit was from a different midwife, again having to repeat story. On 2 occasions they didn’t introduce themselves. I felt staff were busy and stressed, no fault of theirs. Due to lack of any relationship this didn’t feel a very supportive model of care, had I had any issues around mood etc I dont think I could have said to a stranger and also they would not have known. This was different to my first experience where staff knew me and would have noticed changes in presentation. 

I do not think this is a problem with individual staff members. I believe all the midwives I met cared and were working hard to try and manage demands. 

I feel the changes in service delivery have impacted the service provided. Clinically I could not fault the care but this model is not patient centred and supportive of people at a very vulnerable time. 

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Responses

Response from Gail Bell, Deputy Head of Midwifery, Women and Children, NHS Forth Valley 4 years ago
Gail Bell
Deputy Head of Midwifery, Women and Children,
NHS Forth Valley

Submitted on 20/10/2019 at 18:03
Published on Care Opinion at 18:03

Dear MH19

Thank you for your posting. I hope you and your family are well.

Your feedback is very much appreciated and it is very clear that you have gone through two very different experiences of care especially in the antenatal and postnatal episodes, one very positive and the other unfortunately not so positive.

Maternity services are in a period of great change and we want to make sure we get it right. By listening to our mums we can make sure the changes we are implementing are positive ones and will lead to improved care and support for everyone. As with any type of change process, we do not always get it right first time and that is why we need to continually review and adapt until we achieve a truly person centred model of care.

Pregnancy is both exciting and frightening so knowing your Midwife and building a good relationship with her most definitely leads to better outcomes. Throughout the journey as she gets to know you she will be able to anticipate and plan care around your individual needs. Quite often your Midwife is almost part of the family by the time your wee baby arrives! I am sorry this was not the case in your second pregnancy.

It was great to hear your wonderful feedback about the Bluebell Team and your first baby. It almost sounds like we got it back to front as the aim of the changes is to give care like your first time and not the second!

I will share your points with the team who are supporting the change process so that we learn from your comments. We want to make our care as person centred and supportive as possible so if there is any other information or suggestions that you feel would help I would be more than happy to be contacted either by email at gailbell@nhs.net or via telephone on 01324567484.

Once again thank you for taking the time to share your experiences with us and be assured we will endeavour to make every pregnancy experience as good as your first with the Bluebell Team.

With best wishes to you and your family.

Kindest regards

Gail

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