CUMH 20 week scan

ali_d

I'm on my first pregnancy and have my 20 week scan in September.
Just wondering if it will be an anatomy scan or just a normal one? I completely forgot to ask at my last appointment!! I know they weren't doing them as routine for a while but heard that they have started doing them again - anyone have any recent experience?

January

20 week scans are usually anatomy scans, I'd give the hospital a ring and check just to make sure though.

aisling86

You need to meet certain criteria to get an anomaly scan in CUMH - high bmi, family disease, age etc.... You would have been told fetal assesment would contact you with a date closer to the time. If you have a date & time now it's just your standard 20wk appointment which is a quick scan.

lazygal

aisling86 wrote: »

You need to meet certain criteria to get an anomaly scan in CUMH - high bmi, family disease, age etc.... You would have been told fetal assesment would contact you with a date closer to the time. If you have a date & time now it's just your standard 20wk appointment which is a quick scan.

This is absolutely appalling. Why isn't it standard as per best medical practice?

Bunnyslippers

My 20 week scan at Cork was literally a 5 min job with a consultant to check all was well, the scan was 2 mins if that just to check baby was moving and had a heartbeat, that was it!!! Luckily I was down for the anomaly scan at 23 weeks, if I wasn't down for that I would have got a private one! I was quite shocked actually as I know in most first world countries the 20 week scan is like the anomaly where they check measurements, anatomy etc, also if lucky you get to find out if it's a boy or girl, so I was gutted when they didn't even do that as I was so looking forward to that, all my family and friends were waiting to find out too, so had to tell everyone I didn't know anything! It was the same as a check up with my GP only we had a 3hr wait and a 2hr 40min round trip for that, if I'd known I would have skipped it and gone to my GP!!:(

rainbow kirby

lazygal wrote: »

This is absolutely appalling. Why isn't it standard as per best medical practice?

"ah shur you can't do anything about it anyway" - anti-choicers in high places I'm guessing.

ali_d

aisling86 wrote: »

You need to meet certain criteria to get an anomaly scan in CUMH - high bmi, family disease, age etc.... You would have been told fetal assesment would contact you with a date closer to the time. If you have a date & time now it's just your standard 20wk appointment which is a quick scan.

I got an appointment on the spot at my 12 week scan so doesn't look good for getting one! I'll ring them anyway but just wanted to know what to expect. I'll book a private one. I heard they started doing them for first pregnancies but must be wrong.

lazygal

rainbow kirby wrote: »

"ah shur you can't do anything about it anyway" - anti-choicers in high places I'm guessing.

I could almost guarantee it's because women will shuffle off elsewhere if needs be. Remind me never to be pregnant in Cork if this is how it treats pregnant women.

Roesy

Is the anomaly/anatomy scan standard in Dublin as I'm fairly certain friends of mine didn't get it there.

My mistake, just realised they didn't deliver in Dublin. Definitely isn't standard all over the country but should be.

ali_d

The level of care in Cork is great - I know plenty of friends & family that have nothing but great reports, other than long waits at appointments. I'm sure that if they thought you warranted having an anomaly/anatomy scan, they'd do it.
It's only for my own peace of mind that I want to get one done.

TMM12

No anatomy scan in OLOL as standard either. I had one scan at 10 weeks (rushed through as wasn't sure of dates), one at 14 purely to check they had dated correctly & one at 32(?) weeks to check placenta had moved up. Without the 2 extra scans it would have been just the one dating scan done.

Roesy

ali_d wrote: »

The level of care in Cork is great - I know plenty of friends & family that have nothing but great reports, other than long waits at appointments. I'm sure that if they thought you warranted having an anomaly/anatomy scan, they'd do it.
It's only for my own peace of mind that I want to get one done.

I'm having my third baby in CUMH in October/November. I went private so only have experience of the actual hospital itself for labour and delivery bar a couple of visits to the emergency room. Overall I was very pleased with my experience there but there should be no picking and choosing for the anomaly scan. It should be standard care. I personally know of two people who on paper would have been considered low risk who had babies with serious conditions which would require immediate care and action at birth. One of those had not been given an anomaly scan and it was only detected at birth.

rainbow kirby

I would pick a different hospital if there was no anomaly scan planned as part of my care. So many things that can be picked up on at ~20 weeks and care can be planned properly in advance.

12 weeks (with NT measurement and bloods for quad test) and 20 weeks (anatomy scan) were standard for everyone at my hospital with quite a lot getting one around 32-36 weeks as well if there were risk factors, breech baby etc. That should be the minimum - anything less is a bit irresponsible on the part of the hospital.

lazygal

ali_d wrote: »

The level of care in Cork is great - I know plenty of friends & family that have nothing but great reports, other than long waits at appointments. I'm sure that if they thought you warranted having an anomaly/anatomy scan, they'd do it.
It's only for my own peace of mind that I want to get one done.

If I hadn't had an anomaly scan on my first I could have had serious complications. It's absolutely standard practice for maternity care so if I was aware a hospital thought it wasn't I'd seriously wonder about it's overall approach to my care.

Roesy

rainbow kirby wrote: »

I would pick a different hospital if there was no anomaly scan planned as part of my care. So many things that can be picked up on at ~20 weeks and care can be planned properly in advance.

12 weeks (with NT measurement and bloods for quad test) and 20 weeks (anatomy scan) were standard for everyone at my hospital with quite a lot getting one around 32-36 weeks as well if there were risk factors, breech baby etc. That should be the minimum - anything less is a bit irresponsible on the part of the hospital.

You'd have no choice in Cork. There's only one maternity hospital. Your choice would be private care, public care and pay extra for private scan or public with no scan.

lazygal

Roesy wrote: »

You'd have no choice in Cork. There's only one maternity hospital. Your choice would be private care, public care and pay extra for private scan or public with no scan.

It's unreal that women there put up with substandard care. Does no one kick up a fuss about with serious gap in care?

Bunnyslippers

I guess even if you do kick up a fuss what would they do, they are under staffed and overstretched for the population size. I was lucky to get the anomaly scan only because I'm no spring chicken and I have a weird kidney so the midwife thought she'd try me for the application for the scan and I was lucky. I think I read somewhere upto 75% of woman last year at cork were given the scan but only 25% this year due to staff shortages.

Mind you I had to make a trip down to cork yesterday as hadn't felt baby move all day, so was in full flap mode!, so rang GP at 3pm and he said to go straight down as better to check. Off I trotted got my blood pressure and babies heartbeat checked with an hour and a half wait, but then had to wait another 3 and a half hours to get a scan! All was well thank goodness but they only had 3 doctors on call, one of which was in theatre so only 2 for the whole maternity hospital!! - I feel sorry for the staff but it's not great, I'd hate to think what would happen in an actual emergency, there were only 4 of us in the emergency room so not as if they were heaving! I think like most hospitals they have buckets of managers and only a few actual ground staff!:(

lazygal

I'm glad I'm living somewhere with a choice of hospitals. World class maternity services my foot!

rainbow kirby

Roesy wrote: »

Your choice would be private care, public care and pay extra for private scan or public with no scan.

So wrong on so many levels. Proper care should be for everyone, not just those who can pay for it.

lazygal wrote: »

I'm glad I'm living somewhere with a choice of hospitals. World class maternity services my foot!

Likewise. 3 good ones within 4km of me (Whittington, Royal Free, UCLH).

fits

rainbow kirby wrote: »

So wrong on so many levels. Proper care should be for everyone, not just those who can pay for it.

So true. We are getting amazing care, but paying the guts of 3 grand for it. (Ill get about 700 back from health insurance and tax I think)

eviltwin

I had anomaly scans with mine. I never even considered it was an extra until reading here that so many women don't get one. It's absolutely disgraceful that a basic part of pregnancy care is denied to women but not surprising considering the implications of a diagnosis.

January

I had anatomy scans on all of mine (two or three on my last one actually as family history of congenital heart defect that wasn't discovered until after I had my other children), it's absolutely scandalous that it's not offered to every woman as standard.

pooch90

I had an anatomy scan at 22 weeks last September in CUMH,first pregnancy no risk factors. My friend got one at the same time,third pregnancy and no risk.
I found cork great. I want to the MLU in Mitchelstown after anatomy scan.
Labour and aftercare was great. Due again in march and have no hesitation in going back to cork.

StarBright01

I had my 20 week visit in CUMH today and no anomaly scan just a quick 3 minute scan. We've booked a private scan across the road with the Cork Mother & Baby Clinic (ran by Consultant Dan McKenna) so we'll have the private scan in 2 weeks time. its appalling but i'm not going to start ranting about it again ( I let off quite a bit of steam earlier!) apparently last year they were giving them to 70% of people now this year its 30%- just high risk.

StarBright01

lazygal wrote: »

It's unreal that women there put up with substandard care. Does no one kick up a fuss about with serious gap in care?

Tried to kick up a fuss to get the anomaly scan today but was told they were too busy .....so I'm paying private for one...its disgraceful

lazygal

StarBright01 wrote: »

Tried to kick up a fuss to get the anomaly scan today but was told they were too busy .....so I'm paying private for one...its disgraceful

I think I'd be staging a sit in! I can't believe Cork gets away with this. Send them on the bill for your scan if they're simply too busy.......

Roesy

lazygal wrote: »

I think I'd be staging a sit in! I can't believe Cork gets away with this. Send them on the bill for your scan if they're simply too busy.......

Not standard in a lot of counties. Its a disgrace.

pooch90

Can't believe it's so different to last year. I got my 20 week scan,no mention of anatomy scan then few days later got the letter for anatomy scan at 22 weeks. This was all September 2015,

StarBright01

pooch90 wrote: »

Can't believe it's so different to last year. I got my 20 week scan,no mention of anatomy scan then few days later got the letter for anatomy scan at 22 weeks. This was all September 2015,

I know its a disgrace. To be honest I'm trying not to get mad about it anymore I could feel my blood pressure rising earlier in rage! So I've booked my private scan and I'm trying to be content with that. This article is interesting if anybody fancies a read http://www.irishexaminer.com/viewpoints/analysis/babies-parents-and-cork-university-maternity-hospital-may-suffer-without-fetal-anomaly-scan-381890.html

"In 2008, just 10% of pregnant women were offered the scan. This had risen to 40% by 2014 and peaked at 70% by the end of 2015. Dr O’Donoghue, who oversaw and drove the improvement, says much of it was due to significant investment in staff training, re-scheduling timing of scans, reorganising the working of the foetal assessment unit and changing many work practices of the staff.

But what she is looking at now, with reduced staffing for 2016, is a serious backward slide in foetal anomaly scanning, from that 70% peak last year “back to around 30% of women attending.”

Call me Al

I was pregnant 10 years ago with my eldest. I was private in Dublin and had all scans in my consultant's clinic and offices. I had requested, and was paying a fair whack for, a bloodtest and scan at 10/11 weeks ( I was an older mum2b).
I'll never forget the sonographer questioning me on why I was doing it. Her actual comment to me was "you can't do anything about it anyway you know". I was gobsmacked at what I heard. I was mature enough to know exactly what I was doing and felt that her opinion was for my husband and me to decide on for ourselves.

I'm still hopping mad about it all these years later and regret not discussing this lady's interjections, and need to offer her opinions, with her boss my consultant.

I'm saddened that 10 years later the power of a littke knowledge is still being discouraged for whatever the reason (and I'm giving the HSE the benefit of the doubt when I say that).

Neyite

The tangent thread about maternity stats is over here.