Late Scheduled C-Section (? Complaint to Hospital)
Hi, just wanted to ask whether this sounded right or not.
At my booking appointment I was advised that if I were to request an elective that it would be performed in my 39th week.
Now I know I shouldn’t feel like I have to justify this decision, but I have trauma from a previous birth (breech + ECV) which resulted in a CAT1 section after 36 hours labouring on the ward. Add to this that our first daughter (2.5yrs) is disabled (unrelated to birth); so planning is extremely important to us to ensure that the correct care is in place for her at the right time (no shade on her, she is the light of my life).
Anyway baby #2 had a growth acceleration so we were scheduled for repeated growth scans to monitor. At my last appointment (37+4) I asked whether I had been scheduled a date yet - understanding that local policy meant that I might not find out until the week before.
When the doctor returned she apologised and said that due to availability they hadn’t been able to schedule me until 40+6, but if I went into labour spontaneously before this point I could request one then and they would “see what they could do” with no guarantees.
Now don’t get me wrong, I appreciate that this pregnancy is nothing like my previous one. This baby is presenting cephalic and we had CVS early on to eliminate the possibility that she carries the same mutation as my first baby; but what about maternal choice as per NICE guidelines?
Given that baby#1 was a spontaneous labour at 40+1 I feel like it’s very unlikely that I’ll get
To 40+6 this time around.
I feel like the hospital have offered me an unrealistic appointment as a tick box exercise so they can say that they have technically fulfilled their duty of care.
In any case I have made a complaint to PALS, I just wanted to put it to the floor to ask that you thought.
Edit: Just to say thank you for taking the time to read and reply. I do completely appreciate that decisions should be made upon medical need, and given that I’ve also been on the other side of this I understand that as a routine presentation I am and should absolutely be at the bottom of the pile.
I think I’m feeling disappointed that experience and capacity can vary so much between trusts that are only a few miles apart, and feel like I could have been told earlier about the potential for variability.
Edit 2: I’m not a regular Reddit poster and wanted to say thank you to everyone who has contributed. This thread has been extremely useful and I feel much more knowledgeable about the variability surrounding birth options.
I will express to my midwife at my next appointment that whilst I do feel a little railroaded towards a VBAC I’m happy to continue so long as they can guarantee a section in the event of another non-progressive labour - and I’ll be shouting loud for regular VEs!