"I knew I was in labour from the moment I arrived. No one listened."

A mother's experience of Oxford University Hospital Maternity Services in 1991:

After reading some of these dreadful experiences, I had flash backs of the birth of my 3rd child back in 91.

I was due a home delivery as 2 of my births were low risk. However, I started contracting rapidly at 36 weeks, it was late evening. I decided to go to JR.

On arrival I was told that I was not booked in! I explained this was my third pregnancy and I was sure I was in labour. They told me to go home and call my midwife. I insisted that I was nor comfortable with that.

After an hour or so I was put on a ward – not maternity. Then a midwife came to examine me, she said I had stopped contracting and would go home that day. She managed to convince my husband to leave and come back later to pick me up. We had a 2 and a 5 yr old at home.

As soon as my husband left my waters broke. I knew I was in labour from the moment I arrived. No one listened. I pressed the buzzer for assistance, after trying a few times. I was now contracting fast. A nurse arrived – she stormed in a said ‘OMG I thought someone was dying’, to which I replied ‘well actually someone is about to be born’. She examined me I was 10 centimetres.

I was rushed into a lift, I asked her to deliver me on the bed. She would not. I was trying not to push. I was then transferred to a freezing cold dark delivery suite. There in seconds my baby shot into the world. He was blue and the midwife called for a paediatrician while announcing ‘flat baby’. I was shivering and asked what I’d had – she said I can see a pair of balls.

They took him to scbu and left me until my husband arrived. He spent 3 weeks in there recovering from his birth. He was 8lbs4, so he should have been ok if he had a normal relaxed delivery. He had a lumber puncture etc, but there was nothing wrong with him. He made a full recovery. 

Unfortunately, he and his wife had a baby at the JR too and had a dreadful experience.

It was good to get that off my chest