"Second trimester pregnancy loss and care received"

In 2016 I was pregnant with my fourth child.   I had bled several times during the first trimester.   I again had a bleed in my second trimester, due to my stage of pregnancy I was too early for the maternity unit/observation so had to attend the early pregnancy unit.   Here I was checked and told everything was fine and a scan was booked for me for the following week.  

3 days later I was still bleeding, very concerned and frightened. I rang the epu and was told in a very cold and irritated manner that a scan was booked for me so as long as they see me within so many hours they are doing what they need to. Later that evening I started off in labour.  

I visited the epu, my cervix was checked and closed although the dr removed clots from my cervix. I was given codeine and was told to go home as the dr could not scan me as there was not another dr to assist and there had to be 2.   I went home and within a couple of hours was in severe pain, I was in labour.   My waters were leaking and I rang back the hospital and the reception at epu responded with why are you calling again. I could not speak as I was having contractions close together and my mother spoke for me, the dr came in the phone and told me to see how I go, but come in if I wanted to. My partner drove me to hospital as I needed pain relief and I needed to be in the care of medical staff.  

Once in the epu the receptionist said, why have you come back when you were sent home, the dr came out and took me straight in. They authorised morphine and cyclizine for me and said they would examine me.   There were 2 HCA on shift, one came in the room and I asked could I have the cyclizine in tablet form as I react badly to it via any other route, and they said No, this is what I’ve been told to give. you and the dr is busy, I tried explaining that I have a chronic health condition and it effects how I my vitals respond to things and am at risk of fainting, and they were very abrupt and said do you want it or not as I’m busy here.   I was in that much pain I agreed. Another HCA came in and took my blood pressure and heart rate, and commented that they were not indicating I was in pain.   I explained they wouldn’t do as if they had read my file they would see I had dysautonomia (POTS) and my blood pressure and heart rate don’t respond as they should.  

A couple of minutes later I delivered my baby boy without any medical professionals present.   My partner had to leave me to get a dr.   The dr was lovely and the HCA’s became sympathetic at this point, however I was numb, I was high off the morphine and in shock.   I was not expecting to loose my baby as I was repeatedly being told that I wasn’t in labour.   My placenta was stuck and the dr worked hard to remove it.   She was kind and supportive.

I was then told that I would have to go onto the maternity ward as there were no rooms available.   I was told that there will be other mothers with babies, however I could pull the curtains round.   My partner refused and said he was taking me home. I stayed in the epu for several hours and then was free to go.  

I went back the next day to the Honeysuckle suite to meet my baby.   The team there were amazing, but the care I received before from reception and HCA staff was traumatic and effects me to this day.   I replay what happened all the time.   I know the outcome would have been the same as I later found out that my baby had Trisomy 18, however the impact that the care I received will stay with me. Reception staff and care staff need to be aware of the consequences of their actions and there needs to be a specific space for second trimester pregnancy concerns/triage as they don’t seem to fit into either units available.