"Pay nurses more money!"

What I liked

Me and my partner found out last October that we were expecting our first child. This was when we started antenatal with University Hospital South Manchester (UHSM) in Wythenshawe. So far we have had 4 scans, attended antenatal A&E, A&E and numerous midwife appointments. We really can't knock any of the services provided to us or the staff whether they are cleaners or nurses/doctors. Everyone is helpful, the wards clean and everything is explained to us. The so-called long wait times are or were non-existent when we attended (longest was an hour and that was in A&E).

What could be improved

The only constructive criticism I can think of is the amount of information there is out there concerning antenatal. There are heaps of it including different departments/offices and phone numbers galore. On a few occasions at the beginning of my partners pregnancy we found ourselves ringing around different (wrong) departments to book appointments. Again, this was not a real problem as such, just an 'pain'. Maybe a flow chart on this website or included in the Personal Maternity Record would help including embedded phone numbers/addresses? Apart from that, ensure all the female nurses keep smiling those pretty smiles!

Anything else?

UHSM is a breath of fresh air. I've knocked the NHS in the past, but after spending the last few years abroad, coming back to the UK and finding the partner pregnant, I really can't praise UHSM or the NHS enough. Free medical treatment doesn't exist in some countries and the level of service and treatment we've received so far is worth a million in my eyes. Thank you UHSM.