"Perfect experience during recent birth of our son"

Anything else?

We are writing because on the 4th July we were lucky enough to give birth to our son at the Derby Royal Hospital. We had a fantastic experience and the level of support was superb throughout the time on the antenatal ward, delivery unit and postnatal ward. This was in some contrast to the birth of our first son in Leeds. The midwives who supported us made sure they were familiar with our birth plan, which was to use a hypnobirthing approach with very little intervention. Our wishes were fully listened to and one midwife even found extra resources to create a relaxing atmosphere in the room to enhance our experience. In particular, one student midwife stayed significantly beyond her shift ending so that we had continuity of support, which was lovely. They were all calm, reassuring and extremely positive people to have around us at this special time. We had a lovely labour and birth and I was able to manage with gas and air and my tens machine because of the excellent care we received. I felt in control because the midwives kept me informed and were clearly very competent, whilst supporting me to achieve the labour I wanted to have. On the postnatal ward we went on to be delighted with the level of care. Whilst we know that the ward was full, we could never tell as the care we received continued to be outstanding. We were impressed with the discharge meeting as a time saving device that conveyed useful information efficiently. I was particularly grateful for the help a midwife gave me when my son had some mucus on his chest. She heard him coughing and came in straight away to explain what it was and reassure me. Had she not done so, I know it would have frightened me at a time when I felt vulnerable and tired. This kind of proactive and thoughtful care was exactly what I needed. We were discharged only after everything was thoroughly checked including that I was not at risk of domestic abuse. This was again impressive. The delivery of our child and immediate care made a huge difference to our relationship with our new baby and confidence as parents. The role all your staff have in changing lives is hugely important and you delivered this amazingly well. Thank you so much for providing a level of care (including a wonderful porter) that goes above and beyond and treats mothers as individuals. We are very grateful.