I decided to give birth at Leighton Hospital as it had been rated Number 1 in the UK, which of course gave me great confidence in the service. I have been on here several times before to praise the hospital, however this is sadly not the case this time.
I had a c-section in October, from here things went down hill. I was given a nose swab before the operation and I was not a carrier of MRSA. On day one I had cellulitis above my wound, I was given antibiotics which cleared it up. I was then released from hospital after nearly a week. After my release however I had another wound infection and two UTI's (I was sticking to a hygienic routine) I continued to have issues and eventually after nearly three months I was diagnosed with MRSA. Having then had additional swabs taken, it turns out that I am now a carrier. My life has been turned upside down by this and I am living a nightmare. I am currently trying to rid my body of this, but it is proving very difficult, especially with a baby. I am also concerned for what now lies ahead for us health wise. I don't want to pass this on and I am desperately trying not to, but it is very difficult. I have to say though that the ward was very clean, and so
I must have contracted MRSA during the operation.
To add to this I feel that the pressure to breastfeed is just too intense. After surgery myself and my baby just couldn't make it work, we tried for nearly a week, but it just wasn't happening. On the second day my baby became jaundice. I wanted to express my milk for him, but was constantly pressurised to put him to the breast, which just didn't work, even with every Midwife trying to stick him on there. Eventually after 4 days I was given a breast pump and the jaundice cleared up. I have been expressing milk ever since for a healthy and happy baby. To me it didn't matter how he got the milk, as long as he got it. In my room many women were struggling and often left in tears, feeling like failures and unable to provide for their little ones. It is not an easy thing to do and I think that there should be a little more support rather than just pushing mothers while trying to meet targets.
Having said that, staff are brilliant and I understand that unrealistic targets mean that they are understaffed and over worked. I know that they work very hard and that as a country we are very, very lucky to have the NHS. It's an incredible service that saves lives, what could be more important? I just feel that ithe pressure and long working hours that are forced onto staff is why sometimes things fall short and this puts both staff and patients at risk. This is a very unfair and dangerous situation.
"Unrealistic targets and working hours put care..."
About: Leighton Hospital Leighton Hospital Crewe CW1 4QJ
Posted via nhs.uk
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