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Problems with neonatal at wishaw general

Posted By 1959

"Problems with neonatal at wishaw general "

About: University Hospital Wishaw / General Surgery (Wards 16-18)

(as a relative),

All these issues have been noted over the past months and still are being noted. Some of the midwives and consultants are brilliant at their job, but I feel that the majority of others I came into contact with need to be retrained now. We have found the lack of communication is an absolute disgrace. And the attitude of some of the midwife staff speaking to each other and also to parents is disgraceful.

In our experience, parents were not told everything that was being going on with their child. They were calling and being told that everything was fine, and the baby had been great, but then coming in to find that the midwife says completely different.

How can parents and family members go home feeling their baby is going to be ok, when we call we are not being told the truth? It seems that the midwives are messing about with treatment, as if a premature baby doesn't have enough to fight.

We noticed the baby was unwell and constantly said for over a week to the midwives, but everyone said the baby was fine. Apparently, the midwife knows best and the baby's fine. However, over a week later, a consultant came in, has one look at the baby and called for an emergency blood transfusion and antibiotics.

Clearly, the midwives need to be retrained, and also at least listen to the parents, who clearly can tell there's a problem with their child. I could go on and on as the list is endless, but it will all be told and written in a formal complaint.

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Responses

Response from Wendy Drysdale, Senior Midwife for Neonatal and Transitional Care Unit, Maternity Services, NHS Lanarkshire 9 years ago
Wendy Drysdale
Senior Midwife for Neonatal and Transitional Care Unit, Maternity Services,
NHS Lanarkshire

Submitted on 28/10/2014 at 18:09
Published on Care Opinion on 29/10/2014 at 13:55

picture of Wendy Drysdale

Dear 1959,

I’m really disappointed to hear of your family’s experience and I’d like to apologise that the attitude of some of the midwifery staff and the level of communication was below the standard we would expect.

I was particularly concerned to read your comment about being able to leave your baby to go home. As a parent myself I appreciate how difficult and stressful it can be when your child is unwell and I too would want to be certain that my child was safe and well cared for.

We aim to provide safe, person-centred care for all babies within the Neonatal Unit and we know we can only do this by including the parents in all elements of care. There is a ward round every day and each baby’s clinical condition and care is reviewed and discussed by the Neonatal team led by the Consultant Neonatologist. We expect the staff caring for your baby to share this information accurately, consistently and sensitively with you and your family.

It is extremely important that staff listen to any questions and concerns you may have whether they are in the unit or at home. We expect our staff to answer any queries confidentially and also offer the opportunity to discuss care or any concerns with our Consultant Neonatologists if required. I’m sorry this doesn’t appear to have been your experience.

Thank you for your compliments regarding some of our midwives and consultants being brilliant. I would like to reassure you that all our midwifery staff within the NNU are professionally registered and are required to attend mandatory training on a yearly basis, with additional training being completed when required.

We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss your family’s experience. If you are agreeable please contact Yvonne Ross our Patient Affairs Manager by calling 01698366558.

Kind regards

Wendy

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Update posted by 1959 (a relative)

I will contact the number are we able to make an appointment with yourself? as extremely disappointed and this is not all our concerns as we have a whole lot more we would like to discuss.

Response from Wendy Drysdale, Senior Midwife for Neonatal and Transitional Care Unit, Maternity Services, NHS Lanarkshire 9 years ago
Wendy Drysdale
Senior Midwife for Neonatal and Transitional Care Unit, Maternity Services,
NHS Lanarkshire

Submitted on 29/10/2014 at 22:34
Published on Care Opinion on 30/10/2014 at 09:32

picture of Wendy Drysdale

Dear 1959,

Thank you for responding. I would appreciate the opportunity to meet personally with you as soon as possible so that we can have the opportunity to discuss all of your concerns. If you contact the number and speak to Yvonne Ross she will communicate directly with me to arrange an appointment at a time that is suitable to you.

Best Wishes

Wendy

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Update posted by 1959 (a relative)

I have called and got an appointment with you for Tuesday but can I just say things have just went from bad to worse as the days sorry even minutes are going on. I am absolutely disgusted that they have just said they cannot do 1 to 1 care(which we were told 16weeks ago that's what they do which they haven't actually done since day 1) and a midwife doesn't have 15 minutes to settle a baby so they need to sedate them.

Response from Wendy Drysdale, Senior Midwife for Neonatal and Transitional Care Unit, Maternity Services, NHS Lanarkshire 9 years ago
Wendy Drysdale
Senior Midwife for Neonatal and Transitional Care Unit, Maternity Services,
NHS Lanarkshire

Submitted on 31/10/2014 at 14:12
Published on Care Opinion at 16:58

picture of Wendy Drysdale

Dear 1959,

Thank you for making this appointment. It is extremely important that you have this opportunity to discuss your concerns and anxieties with me, this will also provide me with more information to enable me and our team to address your concerns.

I look forward to meeting you.

Best Wishes

Wendy

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Response from Susan Stewart, Associate Director of Nursing, North Lanarkshire, Health & Social Care Partnership 9 years ago
Susan Stewart
Associate Director of Nursing, North Lanarkshire,
Health & Social Care Partnership

Submitted on 03/11/2014 at 17:06
Published on Care Opinion on 04/11/2014 at 06:22

picture of Susan Stewart

Dear 1959

As Head of Midwifery and a mother myself I am disappointed to hear of the experience you and your family have had in the neonatal unit at Wishaw General Hospital. We aim to provide high quality person centred care based on the individual needs of each baby. Feedback from families is extremely important in ensuring that we continually evaluate our care and I would like to thank you for providing us with your experience and for agreeing to meet with Wendy Drysdale, Senior Midwife and Dr Abara, Neonatal consultant tomorrow. I hope the specific issues you have can be explored in more detail and a satisfactory solution can be found in moving forward.

I would also like to reassure you that staffing requirements for neonatal units are clearly defined in national guidance and we strive at all times to achieve the recommended staffing ratios. It is not our policy to sedate babies unless required for clinical reasons and I hope this can be explored in more detail at the meeting tomorrow.

Thank you once again for your feedback and I look forward to hearing the outcome of the meeting tomorrow.

Susan Stewart

Associate Director of Nursing and Head of Midwifery

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