Odd question but, If you want to have bub in a private hospital....do you HAVE to have an OB?
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Odd question but, If you want to have bub in a private hospital....do you HAVE to have an OB?
Apparently yes.
I asked that same question because I loved the private hospital we chose but not so much my obstetrician.
Forgot the reason though, sorry.
Yes you do. If you have an idea which Hospital you wish to deliver your baby at you must book a maternity bed with your due date and the name of the obstetrician you want to deliver your baby. That ob will look after you and your baby 24/7 until you deliver and it is that service that you pay for.
HAHA the OB will look after you 24/7..... that is easily the funniest thing i have ever read!
perhaps call the hospital and ask them, say you want to use there services but dont want to employ an OB
LMAO - I agree.:
Oh come on ladies - you will PAY for it.....no one says he will be there :lol::
Thanks for that info.....
Ive only heard some bad things about OB's and their 'care'....and the $$$ you pay for their services is a bit steep
Mirabelle, you can go private in a public hospital too now because they are so broke that they need the quick cash LOL, but if you have a look around at your public hospitals you may find some that will offer you the same 'private' care for your birth and the duration of your hospital stay, but you can avoid having an ob.
Even in public hospital, you can only avoid an Ob as long as everything goes smoothly. That's the point of Obs, they are there if you need medical assistance.
Yup if you choose a private hospital, you need to have a private Ob to to be 'signed in' as your carer. They need to know someone is responsible for your care as you don't get doctors doing rounds in private hospitals.
Yes, their services are steep. Since the government tried to help out with the Safety Net changes years ago, on average, Obs increased their fees 200% because they knew it wouldnt affect their business (women claim most back on the SN).
Yes, they chock themselves up full of many clients and are not guaranteed to be at your birth and midwives do most of the work, and Obs DO miss births. Mine missed both. First birth I pushed quick as I was scared of interventions when he was on his way in, second he was on holidays and I got a cow of a replacement.
The BEST care based on study and evidence? Continuous care by a known and experienced carer. Who is that? An independent midwife. And the government is trying to sweep them under the carpet and stop them from practicing.
At the very least, protect yourself with a birth attendant or doula. They will be on your side in the hospital system which is not woman focused or woman friendly. Sadly, its all about business and getting women in, then women out.
Bummer....no wonder it costs so much to go private.
I had a Doula at my 2nd and 3rd birth...
I was going to suggest going private in a public hospital.... why do you want to go private??
You could get the list of Obs that service the hospital that you want to go to and ring around asking firstly if they are available when you're going to deliver and then what the fees are.
My Ob is $1500 and I get some of that back, whereas my SIL paid over $5000 for hers! Mind you these were at two different hospitals (some private hospital's obs charge more than others too!)
I love my Ob and I didn't want to go to my local public hospital, hence private. I don't really need the years of medical study that he has done (well I don't think I do at this stage!) but you need an Ob to go private.
Hope this helps!
Basically i have PHI so i figure may as well use the services i pay for, 'get my monies worth' so to speak.
Ive always gone public, whilst its been ok, i just feel like another number to the system and they dont seem to have the time to help when i needed it the most. Sure they are under staffed, but even 10 mins was a hassle.
Each time ive left early because i felt so uncomfortable being 'ignored'.
Im not keen on sharing rooms all the time.
I know i couldnt afford an OB....and to be going private in a public hosp defeats the purpose of the whole PHI situation KWIM?
Like why pay for PHI and still end up in a public hospital
It's gone now Lulu..xxx
If you go private you need an obstetrician. However, I had one that agreed not to be in the room during the birth unless I needed a medical intervention... - which of course I didn't! :lol:
Remember this is your body. Your baby. Your birth. You decide. Your responsibility though to get the best care for you. For me it was only to have a trusted care provider who was a Woman and a Midwife!
Yep, my doctor gave me a raised brow... But I said: Sorry J this is woman's business and it's normal. If it becomes abnormal I'd love your help! He was very okay with it... We had/have a great relationship because of it.
You can find the care provider you need - but it's your responsibility to seek it out.
Good luck!
Mirabelle, you get treated exactly the same way in a private hosptial - the money certainly doesn't buy you respect and you are still treated like a number - that's something that doesn't change. If you look into it, some public hospitals do have private rooms. It really is up to you and what kind of birth you really want. Considering that you do it pretty easy and don't have any complications, you could even look at a birth centre.
Mmm I would have to say for me the care I received in a private hospital was very different from the public hospital (I was a private patient in a public hospital)...
Private hospitals have to keep customers so their "customer service" is sometimes (but certainly not always!) better.
I know it was significantly better in my experience in the private system.
Trillian i would love to go via birth centre but im classed as high risk to them.
So what do you pay for if you go private in public hospital?
I assume everything?
ETA: I apoligise for a previous coment made....i worded it badly, so sorry to have offended any members
Our closest private hospital is terrible on their maternity ward judging by what I've heard - I've not heard a single positive story about being treated well over there. I was so lucky to have a very small district hospital that was just like a private hospital anyway - choice of Dr and single rooms etc.
Mirabelle, I guess another thing is that even though PHI is very exxie, it costs the same for your public hospital stay as well, just that the public hospital tab gets picked up by the tax payer plus. I would be making use of it simply so you get some benefit from your PHI.
ETA - it's handled the exact same way as a private hospital stay - you give them your PHI details and they send the bill to them and depending on your level of cover you may have a gap payment etc - just as you would with a private hospital.
i *think* you just pay your excess :dunno: probably wrong!!
Ok....great info and to know this...ill get onto it ASAP and see how to go about it all
I've never got a bill for anything (except discharge medications which probably won't apply here).
So, for me it's just a $200 excess...
Most public hospitals will always ask you if you have PHI and encourage you to use it during your stay just to keep the cash coming in. We had PHI when I was pg with Alister but couldn't use it as we hadn't had it long enough, but I would rather use PHI in a public hospital anyway and in this area, the private hospital has no children's ward for some unknown reason, so you go to the public base hospital and just have your own paed etc.
If you want to go private, the thing would be to research private hospitals and Obs. You might like to start with a list from your PHI provider - they have lists of who they deal with. BB is a good resource to research the kind of Ob you'd want (low intervention/breech/high-risk). Then you call for $$ details from Obs and hospitals (after checking what your PHI will cover you for).
e.g. my PHI will cover me for hospital (less $250 excess), including any surgery if needed. Some pathology may be covered, some not. The Ob is covered for in hospital. I think Obs also charge for "pregnancy maintenance", some of which you can get a rebate from Medicare - others can confirm this, never got that far. I'm not sure if anaethetics, including epidural are covered.
I like Flowerchild's idea of having them standing by if necessary, but not having them around otherwise - though it does mean paying for them to do not much. I'd definately have my own private midwife though (heard too many stories about the potluck of hospital midwives)
Some PHI's cover independent midwives
Public hospitals have private rooms but everyone is treated the same. If all the rooms are filled you will not get your own room even if you went as a private patient.:
I also believe (the private hospital I went to) treated me better than how my friends were treated at a public hospital (3 friends went to a public hospital as private patients).
Of course there are bad and good nurses in both hospitals.
I chose private because i am terrified of hospitals and so with private my DH could stay overnight with me and it felt more like a hotel room rather than a hospital (the smell, the commotion)
For my second bub however, i may go public since I hope that I wont be staying there as long as i did for my first bub.
You can do a tour of both hospitals and then just write down the pros and cons of each.
In the end it is your decision and one which will make you feel most comfortable.
Best of luck! :hug:
double post
BTW, I wasnt happy with my OB and believe me when i say obs tend to go on alot of SPUR of the MOMENT holidays!
I went in as a 'private' patient in a public hospital. All rooms were singles and DH was allowed to stay overnight for my entire stay. My public hospital covered ALL costs and I didnt even have to pay my excess. So wonderful.
I even changed our moving plans so I could give birth to my second bub there!
I had a GP and was attended to by wonderful midwives who all had relatively the same philosophy. No OB