"Maternity care July 2013"

I used the Malden midwife led delivery suite and was very pleased with the care I received. Arriving at 4am, I had little wait at reception & probably spent about 30mins in triage. Gas and air was made available to me at this time, before being moved to a birthing suite. From 7am I was cared for by a fabulous midwife, accompanied by a student midwife, through yo my daughters birth at 11.20. The midwives were caring, informative and listened to our preferences throughout labour and birth. Following the birth, the midwives continued to be fantastic, along with the care assistants on the Malden suite, where I remained until 10pm. I was less keen on the nursery nurses, who were very pushy and slightly 'brutal' in trying to successfully get my baby to breast feed. In hindsight, I should never have tolerated their pushiness & lack of respect for my rest, having been awake for over 24hrs. Upon being transferred to the post natal ward (shared due to a complete lack of private rooms), I found the care deteriorated. Nobody informed me that you help yourself to breakfast & lunch, the ward was hot & airless, and my cubicle had no access to a window. The midwives were clearly busy and had little time to support first time mothers. The paediatricians checking on my daughter were superb. The booking process was lengthy and protracted, leaving a very tired patient tearful & frustrated! Overall though, I would recommend & happily use the hospital again. My antenatal care was second to none, with my care managed by a consultant (due to a more complex case), who I saw at each visit and who was very sensible in her approach. The antenatal triage line and care was also superb, with the hospital booking me in just two hours after my community midwife couldn't find a heartbeat at the 15wk appointment.