Well I am trying to get the ball rolling on discussions about some of the new articles on the main site. For pregnancy & birth we have two articles. I wrote mine after I read Nicki's because my experience was so different and it just goes to show that we can garner a lot of information but learning from everyone.

Here are the articles: [LIST]

Nicki's Story

Cristina's Story

Cristina

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Beautiful stories!

The only thing I can think of to explain your different experiences (and this is of course a huge generalisation!) is that all my friends here tell me that there are huge differences in the standard of care in northern and southern hospitals. Apparently in the north, the standard is much more like the rest of Europe - there is overnight nursing care etc etc. I guess Rome, as usual, has elements of both the north and the south.

Good articles.
I have read Cristinas story before on a pregnancy thread. It's great how you were able to handle the second pregnancy so well due to your previous experience. The advice you give at the end is great. - I'm not a mother, should I end up one day being one, especailly here, I'll definitely remember your advice.

...Being in the south I read Nicki's story with interest. I have a few friends here who've given birth. One who I visited after she'd had the baby sounded like she was in an hospital similar to Nicki’s. There were 6 people in the ward all at different stages of labour. To be honest, it somewhat put me off having a baby! One woman had just come back form c-section, another in labour, mamma mia, my friend had had her c-section but a few days prior so she was ok. I think this was a private hospital but not 100 percent sure. I’d be interested to know which hospital Nicki was in…

I have another 2 friends here who were in private hospitals, the ones which are like hotels. They did have better experiences. I think the costs are very high though. Both friends didn’t pay the full price though for various reasons.

I think it is SCANDOLOUS the number of c-sections done here. All 3 of these friends had cesareans. One opted, where as the other 2 were told they had to have it at the end. Both had doctors in the family, but no one will really question the doctor at such a critical time.

If I do have a baby here I think I’d be quite scared! I couldn’t go back to England really as it wouldn’t be possible for such a long time due to my job and I think that for the father it’s important to be here as it’s his child too, so if he works here I think you need to have the birth here. Though I know people who have gone back to have the baby. I’d try to look for a dr here who doesn’t perfom so many cesareans, simply because I think the ones who do are money grabbers. I think the choice to have a cesareans should be down to the mother unless there are complications, and not just because the doctor wants to have the weekend off to go to his beach house, etc.

Delina- do you really think that doctors would schedule a c-section when it's not necessary? Is the C-section rate really that high here?

Definitely! Look what Nicki wrote:

quote:

I was scheduled for a caesarean due to a ‘mysterious infection which could harm the baby,' which was never explained! But I discovered that Campania, our Region, has the highest rate of caesarean births in Italy, probably due to the fact that the Doctors earn more money than they would from a natural birth

If you consider, I know 4 people who've had babies in the past 1- 2 years in Naples, all 4 have had cesareans. One, opted for it where as the others were told they had to near to the end - even thoguh they had had ok pregnancies.
Another girl who chose to go back to England to have the baby had a natural birth.
As I said before, when the dr tells you you need to have a cesarean, few will challenge him, I know I wouldn't.
The drs earn more I think as it's quite major (-I think) surgery, plus they can schedule them as appointments, so back to back during the day and they're done for 4pm.
It's quite sad I think.

Not to mention a cesarean is a major surgery that isn't easy to recover from.

www.anythingbutdull.blogspot.com

That's horrible to think that a doctor would perform unnecessary major surgery on a patient. What about the hippocratic oath?

Actually my friend just had baby number two here the natural way. I wonder what the stats are.

and then imagine having that surgery in an italian hospital. The bathroom is down the hall, and not very nice to share with half the patients on that hallway and their relatives! When you enter the bathroom you are greeted by the lovely smell of urine because there is a big container of it sitting on the window sill.
This is even if you can make it to the bathroom. A ceserean is a deep cut into your muscles and uterus. You can't cough or laugh without major pain let alone get out of bed unassisted to hobble down to the stinky bathroom.
Then imagine trying to rest and get some sleep because you have just had a major surgery but you can't because your roomate or roomates have half of Italy visiting them and there seems to be no visiting hours imposed!

www.anythingbutdull.blogspot.com

quote:

Then imagine trying to rest and get some sleep because you have just had a major surgery but you can't because your roomate or roomates have half of Italy visiting them and there seems to be no visiting hours imposed

This is one element of having a baby in Italy that freaks me out. When a friend had her baby & we went to visit her, I was horrified at the sheer number of people milling round her bed - I counted 20. She'd had a C-section and there were kids bouncing on her bed. I swore to myself that, if I ever get there, I want just husband and myself at the hospital - no one else. Even if we have to lie about the due date. The rest can come visit the next day, or better still come visit me at home. Plus I want a private room. I cannot think of anything more stressful than being packed in a room full of noisy visitors. Why can't the hospital impose some order on visitors?

quote:

Even if we have to lie about the due date

Good idea, but not sure it will work... what about future birthdays? Think it through

I mentioned before how I know people who've had private rooms in hospitals here, costs a fortune I reckon, but probably worth it.

I have just read Nicki's account and it sounds terrifying. My name is Nicola and I too get problems (had my credit card refused in Milan because it 'could not be my name').

If that's typical of a southern birth then count me out. I HAD wondered why you never saw the babies in the rooms with the mother - now I know why.

I visited a friend in hospital recently (San Giovanni in Rome) - he had a broken leg. Anyway there were visiting hours but (surprise surprise!) despite some nasty comments from the nuns no one paid any attention to them. He was in a room with 7 other men and there were no curtains. Door was open most of the time and people were milling around in the hall.

I think part of the reason visitors are allowed at all times (in practice if not in theory) is that there are very few nurses and the nurses are not really like the ones we are used to. For example, they hardly ever come around the check on the patient or talk to him -and when they gave him a shot there was no explanation of what they were injecting. Kind of alarming.

It just seemed like your usual chaos. Makes me scared to have a kid here though! Or maybe the only option is to avoid the hospital altogether and have the kid at home. At least the bathroom won't smell of urine and there will be toilet paper!

Mrs Calabrese - I think that the only way you get a private room is if you are in the private hospital which is very expensive.

or maybe the thing to do is to move to Siena for a few months before the birth and give birth at the hospital where Cristina had her kids.

First, let me say (although you all probably have figured it out anyway) I am a VERY PUSHY BROAD! When I started to get near my due date my inlaws said that they would make sure they were available 24/7 so the minute I went into labor they could come to the hospital. I told them thanks but no. Very clearly I said that I did not want ANYONE at the hospital and that we would call when we felt I was able to have visitors. With the other roomates and their guests, I just said I needed to rest so please go outside. If you tell the nuns to help keep people out they will too.

I also was very clear in what I wanted for birth and I DO question doctors. If they had told me I needed a c-section (before it became an emergency) I would have found another doctor but in Italy it seems people just go with the doctors recommendations. It is unfair that doctors are so pushy that they essentially make a pregnant, tired woman do what they want (I do not believe this is the fault of the patients but it is the fault of the doctors).

We all need to remember MY BODY MY BABY MY CHOICE!

I am still a few years from thinking about this, but I am very interested in hearing more and more about this....

Has anyone had a natural birth?

Among my friends and family I know very few people that had a c-section and I'm concerned that it's being so recommended here.

Please, please, more stories!

I gave birth the natural way, but not in Italy... I'm really bad at telling the story though because it's all so blurry. I remember walking, bathing, walking, aching, trying to eat, soccer on TV (European Championship, this was the summer of 2000 and Nuno Gomes was cute), aching, screaming, pushing, many hours passing, my husband with a towel on his head, lots of people standing around, fatigue, falling asleep while waiting for something to eat afterwards, waking up happy to find that the big belly was gone but without any urge to see the baby, waking up the next day having transformed into Pamela Anderson over night, rain, confusion... and gosh oh gosh I was just a kid myself. I remember that my room mate had a yellow bra and cried a lot. I remember my husband bringing some clothes from home because I wanted my own clothes but he brought thong undies and what was he thinking, I had just pushed another human being out of my body, there's no way I could wear a thong!

but all this was so long ago. Today was his first school day. He doesn't need me the same way anymore.

They grow up so fast.

quote:

Originally posted by rosso99:


Has anyone had a natural birth?

From what I understand often here you don't have a choice as many hospitals don't offer epidurals.

quote:

Among my friends and family I know very few people that had a c-section and I'm concerned that it's being so recommended here.

Please, please, more stories!

I'm just saying what I've seen down this way! Could be different up north... I think that most who've wrote on this thread haven't had kids yet - maybe we'll hear som more reassuring stories!

quote:

It is unfair that doctors are so pushy that they essentially make a pregnant, tired woman do what they want (I do not believe this is the fault of the patients but it is the fault of the doctors).

This is so true, but imagine when you've started labour and they tell you you need a c-section - it would be hard I imagine to get a second opinion then. This is exactly what happened to my friend, her dad is a dr, but he was in England and he said no way could he comment from there. I supposed we're encouraged to trust doctors. Afer 8-9 months maybe you know whtehr to trust the doc or not.

quote:

From what I understand often here you don't have a choice as many hospitals don't offer epidurals.

Ooh mamma mia! Really?? This isn't looking good! I might have to stop reading this thread soon!

Positive stories please... come on!

In the 5 years I have lived here in the country outside of Siena, 4 of my neighbors have given birth (total 5 pregnancies) all 4 gave birth naturally, all without epidurals. All had good experiences as far as they were concerned.

FYI, My friend just sent me this article, written in June about the rise in C-section use in Italy. The article is in Italian, but a few snips below I translated in English (the article isn't all negative, however).

I am happy to keep hearing positive things! Hopefully if/when I will be able to be like Cristina and be clear about what I want and not have the language or ignorance about customs/rules/regulations that leave you challenging the doctor.

http://www.tempomedico.it/2006/813/new.php?id=009

"...Italy is the country with the highest number of c-sections in the European Union..."

"...35.2% in 2004-2005....more than double the recommended rate of the OMU" (OMU = World Heath Organization)

"US & Canada have lower percentages...27.5 and 21.2 respectively"

"...doctors maintain it's the women to push for this....versus the women who say it's the doctors that decide in 87% of the cases...."

I am thrilled that we have this thread.

A few times follks have said the private hospitals are really expensive.

does any one have resources on how to find out exactly what expensive means?

I am interested in finding out more about this very important piece of info.

Any one? Also what about supplemental insurance, does it exist here?

thanks!

I dont have any idea about c-sections up here but I do know that for me it is a possibility since all of the babies on both hubbies and my side have been over 4 kilos.
As far as the epidurals go, some hospitals do have them but you have to ask for them long in advance. I had been planning on it but since my blood pressure at its highest is 110/70, I dont think that it would be a good idea for me.

eek! Now I am starting to get a bit nervous about this