Anyone considering going with a private midwife ?

Hi, I’m not from the Uk and finding it hard to not have one référent person throughout my pregnancy. I’ve had my 12 week scan and 2 midwife appointments and keep seeing different people when I go in. I had some concerns a couple of weeks back and the only place I could go to was the labour / 14+ weeks emergencies because the midwife number at the hospital was not picking and again I saw different people. The services don’t always seem to communicate the infos I give them either. (Sonographer and midwifes had to answer the same questions etc) Don’t know if anyone else used to other systems have had that feeling but I’m starting to be worried about giving birth in such a big hospital with no one I will have seen before and having no point of contacts for the rest of pregnancy. I’ve heard some people go to private for this reason but worried this will be out of my budget anyways…. Anyone else ?

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I’m doing my first pregnancy privately after hearing various troubling stories from friends who did it through the NHS. Yes, it might all go well and for a lot of people it does, but personally it just gives me some extra assurance knowing that i picked my obgyn and he’s available 24/7, and I can see him as many times as I need. Yes, it is an investment, but I decided that’s one thing I don’t want to compromise on, as it’s only one of the most important things you will do in your life! If you have some good NHS hospitals nearby, you should be okay, but our nearest one is appalling, so for us it was a no brainer when the time came

Hi! I felt the same way - the alternative I found was to get transferred to the home birth unit where you have the same midwife throughout your pregnancy. I haven’t decided if I want a home birth yet but they were very reassuring and I can decide to go to hospital at any point. The unit is small and there are about 4/5 midwives in the area, they get together every two weeks in a cafe and you can meet the other midwives and pregnant ladies. If your midwife is not available for your birth, you would’ve met the other midwives.

Hi, have you considered hiring a doula? I imagine it won't be as costly as a private midwife and their job is to be an advocate for you during pregnancy and birth

I have a private midwife who does all of my bloods etc at home and will also do a course of what to expect and in depth feeding. Best decision we made, I wanted to see the same person and really trust the person who will be helping me during labour.

Thanks so much. I’m going to have a look at private midwifes and doulas now. I was hoping to get an obgyn as well but seems quite expensive here so I’ll try to get a check when I go back home. 🤞

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