"I was treated horribly by a midwife… I believe she was racist and Islamophobic"

A mother’s experience of Oxford University Hospitals Maternity Services in 2014, 2017 and 2021:

I’ve had all of my 3 children at OUH.

For the first birth I went to the midwifery led unit but ended up needing an emergency forceps delivery. When I was being stitched up, they burst my blood vessel and I lost a 1/3 of my blood and needed bags of blood. It was very traumatic and I don’t believe I had the support I needed afterwards.

The second one I had an epidural but it didn’t work and I ended up needing to give birth without any pain relief.

The third was also horrific because I was treated horribly by a midwife I saw initially at the maternity assessment unit. Despite explaining to her that I saw a consultant midwife throughout my pregnancy and that she had recommended I have epidural as soon as I got any contractions, she refused to listen and left me alone in pain for over an hour. When she realised there was letter explaining this she backtracked.

She also made a fuss when I said I need gas and air when she examined me internally as I get anxious and find it painful. I believe she was racist and Islamophobic as I’m south Asian and wear a headscarf.

This is just a gist of it to be honest. It really affected my mental health.