West Suffolk Hospital

They were short staffed but those who were there went above and beyond

The staff are rude. Not all, but the ones that are diagnosing and treating you. Bed sheets with blood on them and stains on pillow cases. Dirty toilet's.

Made me feel very welcome! Wonderful and friendly team!
Helped me deliver my baby safely while reassuring myself and my husband during a hard labour! I've had all 3 babies at West suffolk and would recommend them to everyone!! Such lovely and wonderful people ?

Was asked to leave as team were busy
Waited 2hours in pain and alone to see doctor until in tears
Wasn’t checked, and didn’t feel notes reflected this
Great care once with a midwife
C-section amazingly organised and felt very safe

I had to be induced as my baby was small, they acted quickly and kept me informed. The staff were all incredibly kind and caring and did an amazing job delivering my baby safely via ventouse. They were clearly very stretched staffing wise - the same staff were there (doctors and midwives) overnight and then during the next day.

I had strep g sepsis, so did my baby. I ended up having an emergency c-section and baby was taken straight to NICU. I was in hospital for 11days. The midwife on the labour ward was amazing as were all the neonatal staff - I would have been truly lost without them. However the care on the maternity ward was appalling. I honestly dread having to go back if I ever have another baby.

I had been in the day before because baby wasn’t moving, on the way to the hospital my waters broke. The lady examined me and then said ‘i did a sweep while I was up there.’ I didn’t realise this could increase the risk of infection once my waters had broken. She said to come back at 7pm the next day for induction If labour hadn’t started before then. She also said to come back if I felt ill, but don’t just pretend because some people pretend to feel ill so they can come back earlier. So when I went back the next day I already felt like I shouldn’t be there - but it’s lucky I was as I deteriorated very quickly and baby’s heart rate was racing.

- I was put on a ward where everyone else had their babies without knowing what would happen to mine. I knew he was seriously ill but nothing else. We were waiting for tests.

- Over the next two days, every new person that came in asked if I had had a vaginal birth (I had to explain to at least three people what had happened.) No one even acknowledged that my baby wasn’t there or showed any awareness of how Ill he was or seemed to care how I was doing. Very few of the staff were personable at a time I felt very vulnerable - it was the cleaners and people bringing the tea that bothered to talk to me the most.

- I had no idea what had happened to me and neither did the three three midwives I asked, on day 7 I demanded to speak to a doctor as I wanted to know what I had and what had happened to me.

- I asked about what to do with my dressing, one midwife said leave it on and another said take it off on day 5 and check underneath. Mixed messages meant I didn’t know what to do - I used google to decide.

- I was in neonatal a lot so often missed the drugs rounds and had to go and ask for them. When I expressed concern about missing antibiotics, she said ‘I will try to come back when you’re here, but if I forget, come and remind me.’ I said that I could be back at the times she came round, but often they were half an hour or more late and I had to go back to NICU.

- Someone tried to give my antibiotics to someone else with the same name in the next bed, I had to shout through the curtain.

- I went for a short walk around the hospital one day and my husband stayed with the baby. When I came back, a midwife told me that my baby had been taken to NICU for a transfusion. I panicked and asked what she meant and she said ‘probably blood.’ This seemed strange so I ran to the NICU and they had in fact told her on the phone it was for an ‘infusion’ of antibiotics.

- My notes were covered in scribble- one doctor said she couldn’t read them! One doctor would put me on oral antibiotics and the next would change to IV and then they changed back again - they couldn’t seem to agree.

- I was told I could go home after a few days, but obviously my baby couldn’t, so I said I couldn’t leave without him. (Advice given to me by the NICU staff as I was breastfeeding) the next day I was crying and said I just wanted to be at home (to my partner and overheard by a midwife) and the response was ‘well you can go home, you’re here out of choice.’ Which was ridiculous and showed complete disregard to the fact I obviously wanted to be at home with a healthy baby. That comment made me feel horrible.

- After this, I became ill. Sepsis symptoms resurfaced and I really didn’t feel well. I told a member of staff who passed by and she just said I was probably just tired. It got worse and I staggered to the desk, I could hardly walk. Then someone took my temperature and it had spiked, so I went back on IV antibiotics for 48 hours and was told that I could no longer leave. However, that night a midwife came with oral antibiotics (I still had the canuler in) and I said I thought I was meant to be having IV, but she said another doctor had changed my notes, so I cried and said I could have gone home then! (My baby was allowed home at this point, but I just had to bring him back in everyday for IV antibiotics until he’d had 14 days) so the midwife got the doctor on call, who reviewed the notes and said that it in fact made sense to stay on the IV for the rest of the 48 hours, so switched me back!

The overall feeling on the ward was one of apathy, like you were a burden rather than one of care when some women are at their most vulnerable.

Labour suite were fantastic! Such friendly and supportive staff! The wards were busy but staff were still always friendly.

After Labour started on Sunday morning, I had rung the Labour suite a couple of times during the day and night but they seemed very keen to keep me at home as long as possible and seemed more concerned I had Covid symptoms rather than being in Labour (which I did not!) However eventually at 3am on the Monday morning I demanded that I was going in as something was not right and I was in so much pain.

When I got to the Labour suite it became apparent that my baby was seriously destressed and I was prepared for a c section immediately. This experience was all very stressful and difficult to take in. However, at 8am 2 new midwives came on duty and were with me all day. I managed to give birth naturally in the end and the care the 2 girls gave me all day was second to none.

My little girl was born happy and healthy at 9pm on the Monday evening. 1 of the midwives stayed late to deliver her with me, this meant so much to me as she had been with me all day. After birth I went taken to the ward and the care was sufficient for my needs.

The midwives during my labour I can't fault. Things went wrong on delivery of my daughter. There were complications for myself which involved her being quickly passed to my husband and I agreed to something not really understanding. My husband was left holding our new born for a significant amount of time, not knowing what was happening to me. I've since been told by a HV that they could have come into surgery with me? I was kept on the Labour suite that night as I was poorly but am thankful I remained there given what happened the following day. I was transferred to F11 the next morning.

The day midwives were very helpful, although I now look back and I feel like there was so much more than could have told me and advised regarding the damage I had, which I feel would have helped my recovery. The main reason for submitting this and the scores given though come to the night shift. I was having issues feeding and before the shift change a midwife said to get formula for my daughter at midnight to top her up, if I didn't feel well enough to call for assistance.

At midnight I was in awful pain, I physically couldn't get out of bed so I called for a midwife. When I asked for the formula, I was met with a response that I shouldn't call them for that. I attempted to explain I was in significant pain. The midwife turned, walked away and while she did come back with the formula didn't even bother to ask about the stomach pain I had, I was only just managing to sit up and in floods of tears. I put the way I was treated that night to be the final straw of what was a traumatic time. I still go through that night in my head which has not helped my mental recovery from PND. I really wished I'd complained at the time about her but didn't have the strength.

One woman in bay stood up, her baby fell out of her, hit the floor and tore her cord out. One woman gave birth in the corridor, one couple were having a domestic the entire time, one man was escorted out by security. I was put on hormone drip for several hours, turned out my baby was back to back and had his cord over his shoulder. After several “4 more hours” from the consultant the shift changed and I was given an emergency section as our “lives were in compromise” awful experience through and through.