NUH OB Gyn

[mamathemaid]

just found out we're infanticipating!

as we're nearest to the NUH, am considering going there for the check ups and birth. would be glad to hear from anyone who gave birth there. how was it? which OB would you recommend?

(saw an old post similar to this, but it was 4 yrs ago, i thought it better to start a new thread)

[hospitaltour]

congrats on your pregnancy!

can't advise on the hospital and doctors as i didn't give birth there. but i was sent there for my 22 week detailed scan in 2005 at the diagnostic centre and was impressed with the speed and service.

my suggestion is to check out the hospital website and ask for a hospital tour of the maternity/delivery wards.

[22 week scan]

i went there for my 22 week scan too and had a horrendous experience.

the place was full of subsidised patients who were referred from the various public/government clinics in Singapore. These patients only had to pay like $20 for their scans while I had to pay about $100 over for mine.  I queued with them and waited 1.5 hours for my turn.

I had a sonographer who was very cold, uncaring and snappy.  When we asked to know the sex of our child, she said, in perfect Singlish, "you want to know ah?". she never even looked at us.

The moment I stepped out of that hospital, I rang my gynae and demanded that he NEVER EVER send me to that place EVER again.

It is a public hospital that has 60% to 70% subsidised patients.  So its constantly full.  I've got nothing against subsidised patients.  Its just that because of the make up of the patients, you will find long lines and staff who are terse as they deal with so many patients at any given hour.

[22 week scan]

oh, i forgot to add that all scans done by the sonograhers there are supposed to be reviewed by a doctor.

however, in my case, at the end of the scan, the sonographer told us (in perfect singlish) "you can go".  when i asked her if the doctor is coming to review the scan, she said "doctor busy in ward, you go now."

charming.

[hospitaltour]

to 22 week scan,

sounds like an awful experience! did you do it recently as i will be going in a couple of weeks again for the detailed scan of my 2nd pregnancy.

we didn't wait long at all, we got a very early appointment. the sonographer called the doctor in to review the scan and speak to us. it was very reassuring.

reading your post now worries me as my husband is away for business this time and i will have do this alone!

[mamma wang]

I had very bad experience with one of the doctors in NUH  when my daughter was hospitalised for Febrile seizure.Guess she is too young and inexperienced

[Fuzz]

to mamathemaid and hospitaltour

Congratulations to both of you   

I found this out last year... one point worth noting about having babies in Sing... should any complications arise during delivery, only the public hospitals have the capability (equipment) to deal with it.

More specifically, KKH.

reading your post now worries me as my husband is away for business this time and i will have do this alone!

You likely have nothing to worry about.  No reason why your upcoming scan should be less pleasant than your first experience.

[2cents]

If you go to a doctor in one of the private clinics in NUH (they're Ruby and Emerald, if I remember right), it is a very pleasant experience. I had my baby there a few years ago and had a wonderful time there. Most of the scans were done in the clinic by my doctor and I never had to wait long. The private rooms were great too, compared to some of the other hospitals I saw.   

[hospitaltour]

thanks for the reassurance, i hope my scan next week will be as pleasant as the last one.

to 22 week scan, i checked with my doc yesterday during my check-up and asked him about the scan. he said that the sonographers are also doctors so whether you get a consultant to speak to you after the scan really depends on how busy the hospital is.

to OP, my apologies for having hijack the thread! but with the different experiences we've had at the same place, i think the best bet is to have a check-up and a hospital tour there, ask lots of questions, see how you feel about the place to determine if you are keen to continue with it because we all have different expectations!

good luck and enjoy the pregnancy!!

[22 week scan]

i seriously doubt that the sonographers are "doctors".  they sure don't sound like "doctors".  by that, i mean their level of english and overall communication ability. of course, there are doctors out there who also may have abyssmal english and poor communication skills. however, why would their scans have to be reviewed if indeed they are doctors themselves??

the the poster above who had a bad experience when her daughter was admitted, it's no surprise to me.  as it is a public hospital providing services mainly to the subsidised population, there are MANY very young, newly trained doctors working there.

in fact, since nuh is affiliated with the university, there's plenty of medical students too at any given time.

i was not comfortable with having medical students around when I got scanned.  I had to tell them FOUR times to please leave the room.  The first 3 times they just gawked at me.  

as for the poster who'll be having her scan next week, since your last scan was very early in the morning, you probably didn't have to wait long.  mine was at around 11.30am as my husband was taking time off work to be with me.  we waited VERY long as by that time there was a huge bottle neck and the appointments were all running over time.

my gynae's assistant told us before we went for our appointment to be prepared for at least an hour of waiting.  she told us to bring a book to read!

anyway, i've sworn off nuh.

[mamathemaid]

perhaps it's because i come from a family of doctors that i am not "scared" off NUH. they say that often, it is the public hospitals which are able to hone doctors' skills best because of the variety of cases they get. i really don't mind the wait nor mixing with the proletariat. back home, i endured long waiting times for consultations, and put up with it because i had a great doc with whom i felt confident in. or maybe i'm just less picky because this is not my first pregnancy.

[22 week scan]

to the OP.

I agree with you.  I was working for many years in a public hospital myself and that was where I honed my skills.  however, in singapore (i don't know about other countries), once they've honed their skills for a few years, they get good at their jobs and then they leave for private practice. 

this is the reason why we perpetually have semi-average medical personnel at these public hospitals here.

even mary rauff has her own private practice (i think) and the only way nuh can "maintain" all these good doctors is by having them come in as visiting consultants at the times that the doctors can afford to spare.

[Fuzz]

2cents is right.  Opt for the private clinics and you do get a wonderful experience.

It all boils down to economics.  I mean, if we want prompt and attentive service, then someone has to attend to us.  Maybe a team of someones.  These people need to be paid.

It's probably unfair to generalize and imply the "good" people leave the public hospitals, thus presumably leaving the "not-so-good" people behind.

Some of these "good" people could well be purely motivated by economics.

Both public and private hospitals here have their pros and cons.

A friend had a horrendous experience with her gynaecologist who practises in the Orchard Road area.

A somewhat belated search on the internet revealed that man has many unhappy Moms complaining about him.

On the other hand, I was very happy with one at a public hospital.  He always had a long line of people waiting to see him.

To mamathemaid, like you, people put up with long lines to see a doctor they trusted.

Ultimately, it's best to stick with a doctor you like and trust, than to let the issue of whether s/he practises in a public or private hospital sway your opinion of your doc.

[hospitaltour]

hi there,

just to update that i had my detailed scan this week at NUH and it all went well.
waited about 45 mins for my turn. i was seen by the sonographer, a very lovely lady whom i remembered from my 1st pregnancy who is a doctor. after she had done the scan, the consultant on duty for the day dropped by to say hi, speak to us more about the purpose of the scan, did a quick review of the scan, etc.

no students (have to say that this is sometimes inevitable since it's a university hospital after all) hovering around like i was a lab experiment, no rude service, nothing.

for 117 bucks compared to the usual 200-400 bucks (according to my gynae if you go private), it was a bargain. the only downside- the killer taxi queue later!

not sure if my experiences were unique and if the good service is across the board for the entire hospital instead of just this specific diagnostic centre but just thought to share how it all went!

[mamathemaid]

thanks for the feedback, hospitaltour. and great to know you scan went well. were you in the kent ridge wing or the main hospital?