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prinder's Pregnancy
My Due Date: January 12, 2015I have given birth!
Age: 38 years old
Location: Norwich, United Kingdom
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First Midwife Appointment
By prinder » Posted Jun. 13, 2014 5:48am - 233 views - 2 comments
it was more or less exactly what I expected it to be, though arguably not what my mother expected but I'll get to that in a little bit.
The appointment with the Midwife went well. It was about a half-hour longer than my husband expected it would be (to be fair, had they actually sent us the welcome packet before hand the information inside implied that they should have, we would have been much better informed going in... grumble, grumble) so he's late for work now, but anyway:
What all was accomplished? Well, they took my height, weight, blood pressure and urine sample again PLUS they drew some blood for tests, had me do a breathing test and took down as much medical history information I could find.
Things that I found interesting:
~They didn't swab my arm down with an alcohol pad or any other form of sanitiser before taking my blood. Kind of a standard procedure thing that I remember in the states, so when they didn't do it, I was surprised.
~The welcome packet's information was written as though it should have been given to us days ahead of time. It wasn't. Likely an oversight somehow, as there's always going to be kinks in any system, but slightly irritating since knowing the information in there ahead of time would have been VERY USEFUL. Just saying...
~I get that there are different minority groups mixing in the UK, but you would have thought that they would have had at least the ethnicities in all of Europe. Sadly, they don't; and don't even ask about ones from the rest of the world. Listing my ethnic origins (and yes, they asked me to go as far back as I could remember) reads like a book of ancestry and a lot of the ones I listed were either classed as "caucasian/white" or "other." Which, I'm sure (note: sarcasm) is very useful to them in distinguishing risk factors.
~My mother said that I should be prepared for a certain amount of them feeling my uterus/poking and prodding in my nether regions. There was none of that: literally an hour of questions, routine blood/urine sampling and the breath test (apparently also routine even if you are a non-smoker like me).
The midwife we saw said we would likely be working with someone else who is supposed to service our area (amusingly, bearing the same uncommon forename of my maternal grandmother). She also said she would be scheduling our "dating" scan for us so we'll have to watch the post for that. After that, we'll have to schedule the appointments ourselves, so that will be much easier.
My Journal
First Midwife Appointment
By prinder » Posted Jun. 13, 2014 5:48am - 233 views - 2 comments
it was more or less exactly what I expected it to be, though arguably not what my mother expected but I'll get to that in a little bit.
The appointment with the Midwife went well. It was about a half-hour longer than my husband expected it would be (to be fair, had they actually sent us the welcome packet before hand the information inside implied that they should have, we would have been much better informed going in... grumble, grumble) so he's late for work now, but anyway:
What all was accomplished? Well, they took my height, weight, blood pressure and urine sample again PLUS they drew some blood for tests, had me do a breathing test and took down as much medical history information I could find.
Things that I found interesting:
~They didn't swab my arm down with an alcohol pad or any other form of sanitiser before taking my blood. Kind of a standard procedure thing that I remember in the states, so when they didn't do it, I was surprised.
~The welcome packet's information was written as though it should have been given to us days ahead of time. It wasn't. Likely an oversight somehow, as there's always going to be kinks in any system, but slightly irritating since knowing the information in there ahead of time would have been VERY USEFUL. Just saying...
~I get that there are different minority groups mixing in the UK, but you would have thought that they would have had at least the ethnicities in all of Europe. Sadly, they don't; and don't even ask about ones from the rest of the world. Listing my ethnic origins (and yes, they asked me to go as far back as I could remember) reads like a book of ancestry and a lot of the ones I listed were either classed as "caucasian/white" or "other." Which, I'm sure (note: sarcasm) is very useful to them in distinguishing risk factors.
~My mother said that I should be prepared for a certain amount of them feeling my uterus/poking and prodding in my nether regions. There was none of that: literally an hour of questions, routine blood/urine sampling and the breath test (apparently also routine even if you are a non-smoker like me).
The midwife we saw said we would likely be working with someone else who is supposed to service our area (amusingly, bearing the same uncommon forename of my maternal grandmother). She also said she would be scheduling our "dating" scan for us so we'll have to watch the post for that. After that, we'll have to schedule the appointments ourselves, so that will be much easier.
Comments for this Journal Entry
 | Comment from Sianny » Posted Jun. 13, 2014 12:22pm Not sure I've ever been swabbed before an injection in the UK but then I'm normally trying to think of nice things like flowers and Johnny Depp. Booking in appointments with the midwife is all paperwork, mine barely spoke to me or looked at me but I knew what to expect as I had her last time. I get bloods at the hospital with my scan so thankfully they don't give her sharp objects. Also until I went into labour no one looked or poked up there, although this time at my early scan the drs done a bit of browsing. I think your next appointment with the midwife should be much the same minus the medical forms. I would suggest if in doubt about anything between routine appointments, especially if you think you may need a prescription for something book in with your Dr not your midwife, I found them much more helpful but this may just be my area. |
 | Comment from mrsamanda » Posted Jun. 13, 2014 8:40am Uh, gosh. That sounds like a bunch of confusion. They should have sent you that packet ahead of time so you could have been better prepared. Maybe the appointment would have gone a little smoother. Also, I thought it was standard precautions to clean the injection/blood draw site with alcohol. Maybe the US just has stricter rules/regulations. But, who am I, I'm not a doctor. Hopefully next time around will go better! |
