Hi... any mummies delivering at NUH this year or have experienced it before?
Expecting my first and planning to deliver private at nuh..
When we were brought for maternity tour, we were told there are limited nos of private 1 rm beds where dads can stay overnight. so on that day if they run out we will either be put in 4 bedder or 8 bedder...
Wondering if anyone has experienced this “downgrading” before and if it’s common...
Hi,
Had my first at NUH under Prof Su and now my 2nd just delivered under prof Su as well. We did not get downgraded for either pregnancies. However there are 2 maternity wards, 9a and 9b. 9a is where the nursery is while 9b is an extension and has no nursery. So 9a is quickly filled up as mummies want to be near their babies. And with my first(2016) we were in 9a, where the nurses were really attentive to our needs and came running when they heard the babies crying.
But now with our 2nd we were in 9b. 9b has no nursery. So you either choose to send your baby to 9a or keep your baby with you in your room. Sending baby to 9a is a hassle as the nurses have to bring baby to and fro when you want to feed baby. 9b also has bigger kids so the nurses attend not only to infants and mummies. I’m not sure if it’s a policy change but I found that 9b nurses were severly understaffed especially on nights where only one nurse would be working. Call bells can be unanswered for up to 20 mins. And due to this many things are left to you to do by yourself. As we had experience with our first we knew how to syringe feed, change diapers and my wife knew how to latch on. Latching on an infant is easy for some and impossible for others. It takes alot of practice and patience. Also if your baby has jaundice, he or she will need photo therapy. This is a highly stressful procedure. Baby is stripped down to pampers, blind folded with a eye mask (very important to ensure it stays on as the light can blind baby)
Infants hate this procedure, they are cold, blindfolded and you can’t comfort them as they need to be in there for as long as possible for the light therapy to work. Your heart will be torn as you’ll want to carry and cuddle your baby but have to refrain. You’ll need to plan your feeds and ensure baby is well fed so he or she sleeps soundly in the machine or baby will cry, kick and fuss forcing you to take baby out each time this reducing the light’s effectiveness. For first time parents this can be overwhelming.
With my 2nd one we had a high risk jaundice type and were required almost 48 hours of photo therapy. Sleepless night ensued as we had to make sure her eye patch stayed on, kept her well fed and monitor her poo and pee. After 3 days of no sleep you get really depressed. To make things worse there is a shortage of nurses in 9b. I’m not sure if it’s a cost cutting measure but patient bells can go unanswered for 20 mins as nurses are so busy. And they expect you to do many things on your own which can be daunting for first timers. They can also be rude and give an attitude when you insist they help you. Not being racist, i’m indian myself but the indian and china nurses were super lazy, rude and lacked skills but the filipino nurses were helpful, very skillfull and patient.
Always double check what the nurses are doing to baby. They are so over worked they rush through in order to attend to the next patient. Try to learn and do it on your own, changing diaper, syringe feeding, latching on(don’t give up). Monitor and record baby’s feeds, pee and poop. Be prepared to feed, change diapers, pump out milk, staying awake for 2-3 days round the clock and having emotional ups and downs and arguements with your spouse and staff.
