If I have to call an ambulance?

Little queastion that I know I should go to the source to ask or ask at hospital but wont be back there for another 5weeks.

DH will be overseas from the 10th April until the 11th of May. The Stowaway EDD is the 15th May. Both my girls came one week past their EDD so I am really hoping that that happens again this time around.

My queastion is though, if I were to go into labour while DH is away, I would most likely have to call an ambulance. The closest person I know would take about about 30-40 minutes to get here and with DD2 I had an active labour of 1hour.

Anyway, what will happen to my girls if I have to call an ambulance? Will they be able to come with me? I don't really know our neighbours and we are rural so we don't see any neighbourse very much at all.

Hopefully I don't actually have to worry about any of this though.

I have no idea! I've had someone come and stay with me so I could just be spirited off when the ambulance came, is that an option? Or can you stay with someone for a couple of days? The logistics of shorter births can be tricky!

They would have to, they wouldn't leave them alone! But they'd probably get you to call someone to collect them from the hospital

My friend went it labour last year (single mum + 2 kids), she called an Ambulance and they wouldn't take her with the kids, she had to wait until someone could mind them. Something to do with OH&S and the kids weren't allowed in delivery suite anyhow.

Not sure about whether the children can go with you. But just wanted to let you know you need to add the baby to your ambulance cover before they get here otherwise you will get a bill if the baby happens to be born at home before they get there. My last baby we just added the baby over the phone, but she had no name before she was born so we put *baby surname* and then after she arrived we changed her details.

Can someone come and stay with you before bubs arrives?

From memory re ambulance rides, there aren't really any other seats where children could sit.

If you really don't have anyone to ask to come & sit with your kids, you need to start asking for support. I'm assuming your hubby will be away for work purposes - if his employer needs him that urgently then perhaps they should step up and provide some additional support. Work asking about. Alternatively if you've ever used family day care or a babysitter, those are the people you could approach. People are very happy to help, you just have to summon up the courage to ask for help.

Does he "have " to be away at the time his baby is meant to be Born ??

Just a note on ambulance membership. I birthed DD at home in an unplanned home birth and then DD and I got taken to hospital to be checked out. They didn't bill me, something about DD being automatically covered because Im a member. And yup, no room in an ambulance for passengers. I wonder if any belly belly members might be close to you?

A relative had one of her babies go in the ambulance at under 12 months old. She went alone while mummy stayed with her sister until I could get to her. They couldn't take the sibling.

That was my thoughts, that they would not be allowed in the ambulance and that I can understand more when I actually think about it.

DH does have to be away. This was a commitment made long before we found out we were expecting.

The girls go to a great daycare and I know they have a car/van that they can use to come and pick up the gilrs if it is daytime/weekday. I think I have some organising to do as a just in case scenario. My best bet is to call someone as soon as I feel something.

I don't have anyone that could stay here for a month so that is not an option. Thinking that we have sort of gotten to know a lovely elderly couple that are up the road. Maybe they could be an option? Hmmm, thinking thinking.

To late to organise a homebirth I wonder?

I hope this becomes a Moo point (friends fans will know what I mean :)) in a couple of months.

A local friend of mine was told that if she went into labour to call an ambulance and they would transport mum plus two kids to the hospital. This mum had her bub very recently and was told that by a midwife only a few weeks ago.
I would have assumed that they wouldnt want to take them in the ambulance, but I suppose if the circumstances meant they had no choice but take the girls then they would.
ps which hospital are you going to?

I had to take DD in an ambulance with me once, she was less than 6 months old though!

:

---

A local friend of mine was told that if she went into labour to call an ambulance and they would transport mum plus two kids to the hospital. This mum had her bub very recently and was told that by a midwife only a few weeks ago.
I would have assumed that they wouldnt want to take them in the ambulance, but I suppose if the circumstances meant they had no choice but take the girls then they would.
ps which hospital are you going to?

---

Hmm. I guess it may all depend on the situation. I am going to Campbelltown.

Cause of the distance I would assume they would take them if you didnt have anyone to look after them at the time. Also I think it would depend on the urgency of the situation .. But definitely worthwhile asking someone. :)

I enquired when I was pregnant with DD2 and I was told no, they couldn't take DD1. My ob suggested in that situation I could get a taxi with DD1 and get some one to pick her up at the hospital. But obviously this would work best in early labour and my concern was speed of labour rather than distance. If your labours aren't too quick and you make the call early enough it may be an option.

Go and talk to your neighbors. I bet they will be happy to help out. If they say yes, spend time there so your girls will feel comfortable staying with them.

If you have to call an ambulance, unlock the front door, call the neighbours, then the ambulance, as dispatch will keep you on the phone until the ambulance arrives and you will not be able to make any calls in that time.

Tricky situation! Dealing with the what ifs, just in cases etc can be so hard! I'd call the hospital you will be going to, only they will know for sure, different hospitals have different policies. I know for my local, it requests a carer in the delivery suite for any children that will be present. I would approach your neighbours, now is the time to build some friendships and trust. Even if you don't know them that well, labour is a time when even strangers are usually more than happy to help.

I'm in Liverpool if you need help

maybe it's worth giving ambos NSW a call and asking them? that way you get to explain the situation and maybe they can offer up options (ie when DD1 was needing to be taken to hossy with ambulance DH freaked out about it all and desperately wanted to drive DD himself so one ambo came in our car and with his bits and bobs to monitor and assist DD while we followed the ambulance...it was really weird but they were fast thinkers lol).

Anyway, what i am trying to say here is that there must be a solution that they can work with...surely?!

P.S. NEVER too late to *at least* ask around for HB help ;)

P.P.S with such a history of precipitate labours i would also be gathering info on how to manage if you are alone in labour. sounds like distance and isolation is a real thing and these babies can come flying out lol. I had to read some leaflet thingos when i was pg with DD3 for the very fact that my previous labour was under 2 hours. not that we want that to happen, but can be good to have that contingency in place IYKWIM. (ie. where is the phone, unlatch the door for care-provider, keep kids entertained, blankets for you and bub).

Thanks ladies.

Taxi is not an option were I am, would be hours before one came out here.
Thanks for the offer TK1999 :)
Rivlas, not our direct neighbours but the older couple up the road gave us their number and said call if we need them so that worked out well :)
Peekaboos, your right dealing with the what ifs is tricky and annoying. I bet I don't have anything to even worry about. I bet a couple of weeks after DH gets home I will still be waiting for the Stowaway to appear.

Cassius, thanks for the tips. been a little prepapred for a HB has been my plan all along. The road we have to drive to get to the hospital is not a good one at all to pull over and have a roadside baby so I said to DH that if things go to quick then we will stay home instead of risk the drive. I have a little pack of things and when DH is away I will show DD1 where it is and give it a little name so if worse comes to worse she will be able to help me out too.

It is all so exciting that the time is coming. I love been pregnant but I love the whole build up to labour just as much and the anticipation. What will be will be I guess and I know I can deal with it when the time comes (or so I keep telling myself ;))

I'm a paramedic in Vic, not sure of NSW regulations but they are usually pretty similar to ours... There are no hard and fast rules regarding transporting accompanying children in the ambulance in Vic, but there is certainly a preference not to. It is up to the discretion of the crew who attend to you and they will make a decision based on the urgency of transporting you to hospital. Most paramedics will exhaust all other options (relatives/neighbours...) before agreeing to transport you with two accompanying young children. Assuming you are attended by a two person crew (not carrying any student observers) there are two additional seats in the ambulance; the front passenger seat and another behind the head of the stretcher. Neither is fitted with child restraints or bolts to attach a child restraint, ergo a child cannot safely be transported in either of these seats. Given you have time to arrange care for your kids if you should go into labour whilst your DH is away (the neighbours down the road sound like a good place to start), I would suggest that you do so. As a mother myself, I would not find it an acceptable plan to transport my 4 and 2 year old children unrestrained to hospital. You would also have an issue at the hospital itself in terms of who will watch your children whilst you deliver as hospitals are understaffed and won't have anyone available to babysit.

Your children will not be left at home alone by paramedics under any circumstances. If things are progressing normally, I would be prepared to risk delivery at home and await the arrival of someone to care for your children. Should immediate transport to hospital be clinically indicated (a medical emergency which demands transport with lights and sirens), your children would come with us - but again, as a mother I would be very uncomfortable with my young kids sitting in an ambulance traveling under lights and sirens, not appropriately restrained.

In Vic your newborn baby is automatically covered by family ambulance membership and you would not receive a bill. You should check with NSW.

As an aside, Cassius, there are absolutely no circumstances where I would agree to travel as a passenger in a patient's private vehicle to attend to a child. If the patient requires my clinical skills, that patient needs to be in my ambulance. In my 15 years as a paramedic, I have never had a parent refuse to allow the transport of a sick child in my ambulance, although parents do often want there children transported by ambulance when it is not necessary and they would be far safer in their car seat in a private vehicle! I would not ever compromise my own safety by traveling in the vehicle of a stranger, possibly one who is stressed or panicking due to an unwell child. Similarly, if the child's condition demands my paramedical skills, a cramped private vehicle presents avoidable OH&S issues as well as lacking access to the full gamut of my equipment. I am surprised - and somewhat concerned - to hear that one of my colleagues has done this, and also surprised that I have not heard about it as it is certainly not common behaviour.

Thanks so much for that reply nickle. Was what I was thinking and I guess it is like you said, it will all depend on who comes and the situation.

DH left today. Legs are firmly crossed now :)

:

---

As an aside, Cassius, there are absolutely no circumstances where I would agree to travel as a passenger in a patient's private vehicle to attend to a child. If the patient requires my clinical skills, that patient needs to be in my ambulance. In my 15 years as a paramedic, I have never had a parent refuse to allow the transport of a sick child in my ambulance, although parents do often want there children transported by ambulance when it is not necessary and they would be far safer in their car seat in a private vehicle! I would not ever compromise my own safety by traveling in the vehicle of a stranger, possibly one who is stressed or panicking due to an unwell child. Similarly, if the child's condition demands my paramedical skills, a cramped private vehicle presents avoidable OH&S issues as well as lacking access to the full gamut of my equipment. I am surprised - and somewhat concerned - to hear that one of my colleagues has done this, and also surprised that I have not heard about it as it is certainly not common behaviour.

---

That's why i mentioned that i thought it was weird. It was against my own judgement but DH insisted and the paramedic agreed. Not entirely sure where you are going with your aside? I also think that you jumped to a big conclusion in saying that we REFUSED to transport her by ambulance - as if we would. this was not the case, my DH asked if she could travel in the car with us, the paramedics agreed and said that one would travel with us and brought all his bits and bobs.
I understand that it was unusual. but i need to clarify that we did not under ANY circumstance refuse to transport her by ambulance. we called them in the first place because we knew that she needed assistance.

Hey Cassius, the only place I'm going is to make it known to anyone reading this thread that it is not considered acceptable practise for a paramedic to accompany a patient in a private vehicle for the reasons I have stated. You stated that your DH 'freaked out' and 'desperately wanted to drive...' - we see a lot of freaked out and desperate people and it is the job of the paramedic to manage not just the patient but anyone else on scene, particularly parents if we are dealing with a paediatric patient. Often, the best scene control is to clear all bystanders but this is not usually appropriate when dealing with a young child and his or her parents. The fact that you state that you didn't refuse transport by ambulance leaves me even more perplexed. If you and your DH were prepared for your child to be transported by ambulance - despite a preference to transport in your private vehicle - why on earth did the paramedic climb in your car? To be clear, I am not insulting you or your DH, I am concerned at the inappropriate actions of one of my colleagues. I do think it is important to clarify in this thread that a paramedic should not have travelled with a patient in a private vehicle so that anyone reading this will not expect the same actions from a paramedic should they ever have need to call an ambulance themselves.

I see that you are in Melbourne, but I don't know what area you live in. If you would like to PM the date of ambulance attendance and the address the ambulance was dispatched to, I would be very pleased to follow up the issue so that the crew that made this decision can be made aware of the reasons their actions were inappropriate. If you are not comfortable doing so, my only recourse is to make it clear in this public forum that these paramedics made a very poor decision.

:

---

I'm a paramedic in Vic, not sure of NSW regulations but they are usually pretty similar to ours... There are no hard and fast rules regarding transporting accompanying children in the ambulance in Vic, but there is certainly a preference not to.

---

That's interesting nickle, the crew I spoke to said there was a rule -no children. I guess it's much easier for them to say that than, it's at our discretion and we don't want to because we don't think it's safe. If they say its a rule, perhaps they get less arguments.

Kazzo - you're right, I'm sure nothing will happen!

:

---

That's interesting nickle, the crew I spoke to said there was a rule -no children. I guess it's much easier for them to say that than, it's at our discretion and we don't want to because we don't think it's safe. If they say its a rule, perhaps they get less arguments.

---

when i had the PPH at home 5 weeks post partum the ambos were also adamant that they couldnt take my 5 week old with me. it made sense as i was all woozy and the paramedic said that it would not be safe. so DH had to drive with kids and meet us there. TBH i couldnt really imagine kids actually fitting in the ambulance lol...all pretty teeny in there once you and the paramedic are in there!

:

---

when i had the PPH at home 5 weeks post partum the ambos were also adamant that they couldnt take my 5 week old with me. it made sense as i was all woozy and the paramedic said that it would not be safe. so DH had to drive with kids and meet us there. TBH i couldnt really imagine kids actually fitting in the ambulance lol...all pretty teeny in there once you and the paramedic are in there!

---

5wk old I can understand. Who would hold a newborn if the mum was unable to when been taken to hospital?

Kazzo just saw this. Not sure I am much help as I think I live as far away as others you know. But if you are desperate you know you can call me!

Your so sweet, thanks for that. If I was still in Picyon though it would probably be a consideration. I WILL (telling myself firmly) be fine though. The Stowaway has been told to stay and (hopefully) will listen. :)

you will be more than fine :hug:

You will birth beautifully and how this baby needs and wants and will be surrounded with bucketloads of love.

My closest neighbour just called in to check on me . He said to call on them at anytime if needed. He is a detective so works random hours but his wife is nearly always home. I did not have to worry to much after all, the help gas been offered. As long as they bring their dog the girls will be fine with them at:).

Oh and he brought us a box of crispy creams. It has been years since I have had them. Girls don't like donuts. Oh boy I can feel my bottom growing already.

that is awesome happy news! so nice to know that the help is there ;)