Private vs Public

[Olive]

i too have PHI but chose to go public and had senstation birth and after care!! i was in for 4 days and could fault anything, like others have said if your happy public go public!!
i too have a friend that scoffs at me having gone public, used a doula AND declinded the Hep B!
she went private and ended up with a horrific infection and was readmitted, costs her heaps with excess x2, and her obs went on hols the day she was due (and was born on his due date)

[sunshine_sieben]

I haven't read all the replies and I don't know where you live, but here is my personal opinion:
Public and private both have their pros and cons. Every hossy is different. So it would be worth investigating the particular private hopsital rather than just making a decision based on the fact that it's a private one.

I personally don't think private hospital is worth it, especially seeing your easy problem free birthing experience. Depending on the hospital, some of my friends have ended up spending a few thousand dollars on their birth. Others have paid next to nothing. BUT, don't forget the high intervention rates that come with many private hospitals.

Seein you had such a straightforward first birth, have you considered going through a public birth centre? I don't know if this option is available near you, but if it is, I can only reccommend it. I had DD1 in the birth centre at the Gold Coast public hospital and the care was second to none. I had much more 1 on 1 care before during and after the birth than anyone I know who went to a private hospital. Continuity of care maes such a difference (having the same carer throughout your whole pregnancy, labour and for 6 weeks after the birth). I am pregnant with baby #2 and am going through the same birth centre. I even have the same lovely midwife. They do most of the pre-natal visits at home, which makes it so much easier when you have a toddler to look after. You do go home roughly 4 hours after the birth, if everything goes well. So no need for a private roome. I like that idea as it will help DD bond with the new baby. It would be a good idea to enlist some help so you can recover from the birth. My mum was staying with us for a few weeks (she's from overseas), so she could cook and clean for me which made a huge difference. My midwife came to my house for around 5 hours a day for the first week after DD was born, to make sure BFing was established well. After that I had weekly visits for another 5 weeks. You don't get that sort of attention and support from either public or private.

If you're interested, there's a link to my birth story in my signature. And if you're worried about things going wrong,, to my knowledge, most if not all public birth centres in Australia are within a hospital, so if you or bubs needs emergency care, it is right down thee corridor.

All the best making your decision. Don't let other people push you into something you don't feel comfortable with. Having your child in a private hossy is not a status symbol. It is not necessarily better care. And it is a decision you should base on what you feel more comfortable with, not to keep up with the Joneses.

Sasa