[NorthernLife]

I am not sure what i will do! I only got my BFP the other day and seeing as my current "baby" is nearly 6 it was definitely not planned! My other three (twins, and singleton) we went private, but this time around I have to do some research. We live in Darwin and from what I have heard there isn't much difference between the two. I am also hoping to have a VBAC2 - so that will be a big decider if i need to go private to be aided in that.

[Lokum]

Private.

I have hideous M/S, so I called my OB's rooms, and spoke to her midwife. They faxed a script for Maxalona nd Zofran to the pharmacy up the street from my house. Didn't have to haul my sorry carcass off the couch to find a GP with a free appointment.

If I have concerns, I can call the OB, m/w or the 24 service any time throughout the PG - even with silly questions. I trust my OB, having built a r'ship with her, so I know if she makes a particular call on The Day, I will feel comfortable going along with it .

I like the private room and that my DH can stay. I need to stay in a while, as I have flat nipples, and need lots of help hand expressing to stimulate milk to come in.

This time, we may have the option of transferring to the 'ward' in the nearby 5 star hotel, which is staffed by a m/w, and in that case, DS will even be able to stay overnight with us if we want (though I doubt it! He'll be on holiday with his grandparents.)

Privacy, my own bathroom, and plenty of time to recover are the big winners in the actual post-birth hospital stay for me.

[grasshopper10]

We're going private. I'd go public in an emergency, as I think the teaching hospitals are the best for handling emergencies & quick diagnosis. But if all is going well in the pregnancy, I'd prefer to be in the hands of an OB I know.

[jess1980]

I live in a town that only has a public hospital but I'll go in as a private patient but in saying that I'm not guaranteed a private room and my hospital and ob doesn't charge any extra do Medicare and my health insurance covers the whole cost no gap which is awesome! Can't believe what some ppl have to pay going private. If it go early I'll need to go to KING EDWARD. In Perth as I'm having twins

[*Enigma*]

Public for me. I don't have PHI, but the out of pocket expense for my ceasers just would't make it worth while.

Couldn't fault the public system with my other two (both c/s) Stayed 4 nights with the option to stay longer, but wanted my own bed (private beds are generally the same, no extra comfort there!) I do however, the shared care with my GP who is an OB/GYN. I do pay per visit, but I've known him forever so its like a private ob, without the huge pricetag lol.

I personally have never heard of anyone being 'turfed out' within 1-2 days, usally straight forward natural births tend to want to leave themselves as quick as possible, even though they can stay longer if they want to. However, smaller hospitals may need the space.

Check your PHI policy before you decide. A friend of mine found you her insurance wouldn't have covered an emergency c/s had she of needed one and would have been around $5000 out of pocket!!! As it was she was almost $1000 out of pocket for having an epidural and the gap on her hospital stay

This post has been edited by *Enigma*: 29/04/2012, 12:03 AM

[April girl]

You need to weigh up the options for your own financial situation. If you will pay tax because your income is too high without taking out private health insurance then you should go private. Honestly though I was private with both my kids but if you gave birth before 34 weeks you had to go to the public (capital city) hospital.I really think that other than for privacy reasons going private is no different to public in Australia in 2012.

[Soccer Mum]

Public, same hospital as last time, they did an excellent job. They are also the main hospital for High risk pregnancies/ births. I dont expect to have one of those but 2 close friends did, and they were transferred from their private hospitals to ours anyway, so I would rather just be there if the need arises.

Oh yeah and no way in h3ll we can afford private anyway...

ETA there were some minor issues with public, mainly just the number of interruptions for people wanting us to complete this study or that study, which woke me up when I had had virtually no sleep in over 48 hours. This time around I will take a very large sign and hang it on the door saying surveys will be completed only if they are placed under the door, if you wake me up I wont do your survey

This post has been edited by Soccer Mum: 04/05/2012, 02:18 PM

[Red nut]

Really soccer mum? That's terrible, they should be policing that on the ward. And they definitely should be checking you're not asleep with your midwife before disturbing you.

[natalia2482]

Were going private. All boked in:) Our OB is based in the hospital and specializes in high risk so were hopefully covered if that comes up.

I know it's still going to cost us around $5k even with private health insurance, but I really want my own room. Have had quiet a few friends and family tell me about how they were in shared rooms and didn't get any rest.

[Natttmumm]

Private as we wanted an obyn. We had a few fertility issues beforehand and were a bit higher risk than normal. I loved the obyn, the hospital and the whole experience. We had two like that and if there's anymore we would go private again although it's expensive. I just felt comfortable having an obyn that's all