As I note in my post Somebody...Anybody...please deliver my baby? I had a hard time finding a doctor in Abu Dhabi. Before forking out a copay, I didn't ask the right questions up front - so what are the right questions to ask when making an appointment with a potential new obstetrician when you're already pregnant?
1. Are you available at the time of my due date?
2. Does your clinic accept my insurance?
3. What hospital do you deliver at (and does that hospital take my insurance)?
If I had asked these questions, it would have saved me a ton of time, as well as the heartbreak of meeting doctors I liked and then not being able to actually continue with them. In the end though, I found Dr. Georgeta (whom I LOVE - more on that later) so it all turned out ok.
Note that these comments come solely from my experience. Other patients may have experienced the hospital differently.
Prenatal (Antenatal) Education
Brightpoint's prenatal education program is great. We really loved the (FREE!) Hala Baby program - it is totally individualized for each mommy-to-be, and Aparna is super knowledgeable. Sometimes she speaks really fast though, so you may need to ask her to slow down and repeat herself! The only disappointment for me was that since the appointments were one-on-one, I didn't get to meet other expecting mothers - this, however was a super ultra bonus for G because he preferred the one-on-one to a group class. So it worked out for both of us.
The also offer yoga classes for expectant mothers, but I never went, so I can't say much about that service.
Prenatal Doctors Appointments
Scheduling appointments at Brightpoint is super easy. The staff handling appointments and insurance pre-authorizations are generally very good. My only real comment here is that during the summer holiday, the doctors go on vacations so wait times will be extended. When Dr. Georgeta went on vacation, I think I waited an hour once to see my backup doctor. It wasn't her fault, the hospital was just very busy and short staffed - doctors may go on vacation, and babies don't suddenly stop being born when they do! Also - I just want to note that while Dr. Georgeta was on vacation about 6 weeks before my due date, I never once felt that I wasn't under a doctor's care. My backup doctor was very thorough in reviewing my birth plan wishes, and when she also left for a vacation about a week before Dr. Georgeta came back, I was instructed me to call the head of the department if I went into labor early. In terms of physician coverage I was very satisfied.
Labor
I didn't love laboring at the hospital. When we took our tour, we were shown these beautiful birthing suites with bathtubs and lovely views. The problem is that there are only 3 birthing suites, and there were so many pregnant women coming to the hospital at the same time that I was laboring there that they had to have me labor in a regular room...and I'm fairly certain my situation was not unusual. I was finally able to go up from my hospital room to the birthing suite once my water broke and I had an epidural, however use of the tub wasn't allowed once my water broke, and I wasn't allowed to leave the chair once I had the epidural anyway.
My guess is that those lovely bathtubs rarely, if ever, get used because the required turnover for the birthing suites is so high. While I was up in my birthing suite, both of the other suites were occupied, and a woman was giving birth in the assessment room (where you first go when you arrive at the hospital so the staff can determine how far into labor you are). I was very jealous of that woman in the assessment room - she came into the hospital off the street, and delivered her baby 30 minutes later. I could hear her screams. I had been in labor for hours and hours and I just wanted my baby out of me!
Also - I felt the CTG machine that was monitoring my contractions and my baby's heartbeat was not accurate, and the inaccuracy of the machine caused me a large amount of discomfort (and possibly a longer labor than necessary). The nurses kept wanting me to lie down on my back because sitting up meant they couldn't get clear readings on the CTG. Laying down was really uncomfortable for me on both sides, and had I been able to sit more upright, gravity would likely have helped progress my labor faster. I was finally saved by a midwife who told me sitting up was just fine, but not before I was uncomfortable for several hours. I'd suggest to mothers in this situation where you disagree with the nurses to push to ask the midwife for a second opinion - be your own advocate.
Another thing to note is that I'm not sure if it's Brightpoint policy or Dr. Georgeta's policy, I was allowed 2 people in the birthing suite with me. Obviously, my husband G was there, and I also had Lacey, my friend and photographer. I spoke with Dr. Georgeta about having someone take photographs ahead of time, so she knew it was happening and was totally ok with it. I'm so glad Lacey was there, my Baby Story - Birth Story Photos are AMAZING!
Delivery
Again, I LOVE my doctor. After a long and frustrating labor, once I was far enough along for the nurses to call her, she was so calm and talked me through the delivery...I think I spent maybe 15 minutes pushing. Maybe less. She talked through her reasoning behind her instructions (don't push when it's not the right time, you'll just waste energy!) and she had a very calming nature about her. Plus she honored my birthplan, and for that I was so thankful. I can't say for sure, but with another doctor, I may have ended up with a C-Section since my labor was progressing so slowly after my water broke. Who knows? I'm glad I was able to deliver vaginally.
One side comment that is important to note - I was given a card telling me what to bring for my child. The card said baby clothes, baby bath towel, and diapers. So we brought exactly that - a few onesies, a bath towel, and some diapers & wipes. You also need to bring socks, mittens, hats, and blankets. The hospital has blankets, but they do not have the other stuff. Also, there were plenty of diapers at the hospital - so that card is not super accurate. I remember my anxiety during and after labor when the neonatal nurses were asking my husband "where are the blankets? where are the hats? mittens?" when we weren't instructed to bring any of those things!!! Luckily I had stashed a hat into my delivery bag along with socks - they used the socks on both her hands and feet, and used the towel I brought as a blanket.
Also - the hospital provides adult diapers for post delivery, and they are literally diapers just like a baby would wear, but for grown-ups. They're hard to put on, and they're baggy and saggy and weird - I'd recommend buying a package of Depends or adult diaper briefs that pull on like underwear - I found them to be much more comfortable than what the hospital provided.
Post-Delivery
Here is where the rubber meets the road, and why I 100% recommend Brightpoint, despite any of my complaints. Lacey told me later that she knew things were not quite right because Baby L was covered in more blood than she should have been. My post-delivery was complicated, I hemorrhaged and lost a litre of blood. Again, Dr. Georgeta was cool as a cucumber, and everything turned out just fine.
My post-delivery care was phenomenal. Again, I had some arguments with nurses, and I need to be more vocal about my pain, however overall, in general the nurses are very kind and nurturing.
The pediatric department also took excellent care of my baby. I was able to rest and recover - and while sleeping in a hospital is never fun (vital sign checks all. night. long.), I was thankful for the support.
Since I had an extended stay, I pretty much tried everything on the menu. All the breakfast options were decent. I would avoid the western food options for lunch and dinner and stick with either the Arabic or Asian/Indian options. The western choices were pretty terrible, the others were actually pretty good. The desserts were also pretty bland. I really loved the high fiber cookie that was a snack option (not to be confused with the digestive crackers - those were like cardboard). I never went hungry at the hospital, which is saying something because after my blood transfusion, I wanted to eat all the time.
Pediatrics
I wouldn't say I love the pediatrics department as much as I love the OB/GYN department. The neonatologists and pediatricians are very good, and took excellent care of my baby while she was in the hospital. They also took good care of her after, I just always feel judged by Baby L's doctors when I bring her in for checkups. Maybe it's just me. Either way, I started bringing my husband along, and that judge-y feeling went away.
For more details on my actual birth story, I've written them here - I tried to keep this post fairly focused on reviewing the hospital itself! Thanks for reading!
Birth Story
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