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MAMA-KANGAROO 034
What year did you give
birth? In which town and hospital?
Did anything unpleasant happen to you in the hospital? What? Did anybody insult you? How? For reasons I still can’t understand, (my connection there told me that I had to “keep my place” because they were overbooked!?!?) I had to stay at the pregnancy pathology ward for 10 days. The sanitary conditions there were horrible, but the staff was wonderful. They never, the whole time I was there, ever said an unkind word to me. But, the examinations were much more painful and uncomfortable than they had ever been with my private gynecologist during the pregnancy. How were you addressed in the hospital? By your name and last name, or some nicknames? Which ones? They addressed me by my name, except when they would call out our surnames or both names and surnames from a list. Were there any problems with the accommodation or with the medical equipment? What sort of problems? I had reserved a suite for post-delivery stay. The C-section ward was new, clean, impeccable. My previous, involuntary stay at the pathology ward was a trying experience because they were overbooked (they moved us three times during the 10 days I was there) and because of the catastrophic state of hygiene (30 pregnant women, 2 working showers and 3 toilets). I used to sneak out and go home every afternoon to take a shower and then come back to the hospital to spend the night there and “keep my place”. When did you see your child for the first time after giving birth? How often did you see him/her? Could you see him/her whenever you wanted? The C-section was performed around 10 in the morning, and the first time I saw my baby was in the evening, for a very short while. After I had settled in in the suite, the following day, the baby was brought to me every 4 hours (excluding the night). Also, whenever someone came to visit me (the baby’s Dad, my sister) they would bring the baby for them to see it. (The advantage of being in a suite and having a “connection” at the hospital? The fact that everyone was really nice to me or that mm was bringing me juices and chocolate? I don’t know…) When did you breastfeed your baby for the first time? Were there any problems with breastfeeding? What sort of problems? I breastfed him the next day, if he managed to suckle anything at all. The lactation nurses would come by, my breasts had swollen up and were painful to the touch. One of these nurses helped me a lot (she was gentle and capable, she would stay with me for 45min at the time), but when she wasn’t on duty, I was in trouble. The midwives from the baby unit were willing to help, but didn’t have enough expertise to do it properly. One of them was even very rough, but I don’t think she meant to hurt me. Still, she should have been more careful, because if too much pressure is applied, it could lead to all sorts of complications. If she can’t do it, she shouldn’t offer to help at all. Did you ever happen to doubt the expertise of the doctors and other medical staff? When and why? The doctor that performed my C-section was a relative of mine. My mother (a retired doctor herself) always spoke very highly of the C-section ward and of the entire hospital. I am not competent enough to assess their expertise, but I was very confident that my relative would do a good job, so I had no doubts whatsoever. Did you ever doubt whether some of the hospital protocols and rules were justified? Which ones? Why? How would you change them? While I was staying at the hospital, a memo came from the Health Department about a ban on epidural use (some hospitals used to charge according to the official price list, some not, it all ended up in the papers). Although I had expected to have a C-section (in total anesthesia), I was worried. About a month after that, they managed to find a solution for this situation, but in the meantime, several women had to deliver their babies without the epidural. Did you have to bribe anyone? If yes, whom (you can state just his/her title, without a name)? What for? How much? No-one ever asked for anything, but the baby’s exhilarated father was dishing out gifts to whomever happened to be there (not big gifts, sometimes only juices and coffee). Do you have any other impressions or comments that you consider important? Lack of communication. During the examinations, most of the doctors wouldn’t give us any information at all, not even if confronted with a direct question (they would just waive their hands as if to say “I am a doctor, I see/know, you shouldn’t care about these things”. I am a daughter of a doctor (although I have never liked medicine myself – I am a programmer) and I have learned to live with their arrogance, but I do think that it is a doctor’s duty to give his or her patient a moment of their time and answer some of the questions a patient might have.
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STORIES FROM MATERNITY WARDS Mama-Kangaroo 002
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