Maternity Ward Tour

On Monday evening we headed back to the hospital to get more information on the maternity ward and process and other things we need to do in the next three months.

I wasn't really sure what to expect.  One nice thing about the whole pregnancy process for me is that it is new to both of us and I have no experience of the UK system so nothing to compare it to really.  We're learning as we go along and with advice from friends and colleagues which feels really nice.

The evening started with the head midwife and one of the doctors giving a talk in a lecture theatre and taking questions.  This bit was especially good for me as I learnt lots of vocabulary that will be useful - although I am not sure I will remember it all while in labour...  The process made everything seem much more real and a little scary but nothing too bad. For the parts that did worry me, I felt it was better to have time to consider them rather than have them sprung on me during labour.  It was great to be able to imagine the labour a little more clearly though.

After the questions we were taken on a tour of the maternity ward.  There is a waiting area with warmed seats and then several birth rooms which were, for my expectations, very modern and spacious.  Each one has a big bed and a bath for water births.  They have been renovated fairly recently and have lots of modern equipment.  The dimmed lights made them seem quite calming and I hope it has the same effect in June.

The post-birth process was also explained to us.  There are rooms where you can stay with one other mother and baby for two to five days depending how the birth goes.  

All in all, I was really impressed with the system and the facilities and am looking forward to going back while on maternity leave to formally register there.  We got lots of information so now it is onto the search for a midwife!