"Labour and Delivery at the Royal Women's -VIC"

I write as I am disgruntled by my assessment and birth triage experience at a reputable tertiary hospital in Melbourne. For me this system was not a positive one and I did not feel it was conducive to remaining positive and in control for labour and delivery. On arrival at the hospital I was whisked into the emergency assessment area, where I was shut into what seemed like a tiny room while I was 'admitted' to the hospital. Then I was taken to a birth triage area. I thought 'what a violation of privacy!'. In my opinion it's just what every woman needs in labour - to feel like she must respect the women around her and feel uncomfortable for however long it takes to be assessed. For me, that was more than half an hour. I was in control and in a good headspace on arrival and then I was, in my opinion, forced to pace a curtained off stall with no room to move between bed, chairs, equipment and remain comfortable. To me this is not acceptable.

I was happy with the care I received once in the birth suite and I felt the postnatal care was excellent (except the few times I was left too long with painkillers!).