Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-08-10 Person 5 5 0

I would like to thank my midwife Zoe Lyall for the support shown through out my pregnancy. I could not have asked for a better support with every visit. Zoe was very reassuring and calming. Sometimes it is a worry that midwives are sometimes very clinical and detached but I felt that Zoe was emotive, emotive and very experienced and showed commitment demonstrating being the best midwife. I think it is important that people feel safe and genuinely cared for and for me Zoe definitely done this. I would have no reservations and fully recommend the service to any of my family and friends.

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-08-09 Person 5 5 0

I received consistent antenatal and postnatal care from my community midwife. Her care and level of knowledge was outstanding given our circumstances of experiencing a neonatal death in our previous preganancy. Her interest and empathy was great and something not all midwives in my experience possess. She was also very knowledgable and understanding of mental health complications which I experienced due to the death of my daughter. Kim was always very reassuring and restored some faith in midwives and the nhs by realising my needs and having the knowledge to rationalise and explain causes for my concerns. Post natal care was also great with reassuring checks and regular visits. In future pregnancies i would love to have the same midwife.

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-08-09 Person 2 5 0

I had a less than straightforward pregnancy. However, despite this I was placed under the care of 4 different community midwives (3 at my doctors surgery and 1 where I had no choice but to use a drop in as there was no available appointments). The issues I have had were anxiety (due to a history of miscarriage), high blood pressure with a query over white coat syndrome, GBS and SPD. I strongly feel that with that combination of issues, consistent care was vital. It just did not happen. I spent every appointment feeling rushed as the first part of the appointment was spent explaining my history to a different midwife and explaining that I was under the care of a consultant and being monitored using the telehealth service so my blood pressure reading did not warrant a further referral for example. It raised my anxiety levels to such a high level I would have physical symptoms before I had to attend the midwife such as headaches. I did not have the time to have basic questions answered e.g. If I go into labour, how soon do I go to the hospital due to GBS? Also how likely I was to be able to stay active in labour when I may need monitoring? I did not have the chance to develop any sort of relationship with a midwife and when I had genuine questions I felt i could not ring for advice easily in line with other peers who I met through my antenatal classes. The whole experience left me feeling quite isolated and unsupported in a difficult pregnancy. By contrast, I found the consultant I was under at JCUH to be very efficient and on the ball despite the appointments being shorter and the clinic very busy. I have no complaints in that the midwives I met were all personable and clearly knew what their jobs were. However, the most draining thing was to explain everything over from the start every time a new staff member was met. I really feel consistency of care should be prioritised where possible and if it's not possible across the board, it should be the focus for those with less than straightforward pregnancies. Sorry to be so negative.

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-07-27 Person 5 5 0

The friendly and knowledgeable midwife. I can't think of anything to improve.

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-07-25 Person 5 5 0

First pregnancy - Felt well cared for at all times. Midwifery unit at Friarage were great when I had an accident during pregnancy. Living in a rural area it's an invaluable service as JCUH is over an hour away.

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-07-20 Person 5 5 0

Gina is a fantastic midwife, she is so cheerful and a pleasure to be around, she makes the full process enjoyable. Fantastic woman!

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-07-20 Person 4 5 0

Everyone was very caring and supportive as far as they could be however I did feel at times there was no continuity as I saw different people each day but overall an excellent service.

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-07-20 Person 5 5 0

Really caring, down to earth midwife. She was very helpful in making me feel secure and very informative. Jess man.

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-07-13 Person 5 5 0

Very good!

Community Services - South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2016-07-13 Person 5 5 0

All the midwives were really helpful. I saw one called Julie (unsure of not second name) she had dark hair and wore glasses. She was brilliant, very friendly and told me loads of information. She made me feel positive about having my first baby.