Larissa

Exactly my thoughts and why we aren't going private, though it would cost about $4000 for delivery in a private unit - not all healthcare schemes cover obstetrics. (1st child had unnecessary CS for, 2nd child had naturally in midwifery unit, which was great).
Does anyone have experience of Joondalup btw?

Larissa

Sorry, I forgot to add
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
BTW all experience I've had so far of Aus hospitals etc. has been fab, they are so clean, lovely facilities and staff just don't have that "Well, it's free on the NHS so put up with cr@p service" attitude.

Bella Donna

Congratulations on your pregnancy - but unless you are high risk for any reason, I'd try and get a home birth with midwifery attendance. As soon as you *medicalise* childbirth, trouble has a habit of creeping in.

Where are you headed? There are some excellent doula services here in WA, and I've heard there are some highly-rated midwives too.

Good luck - is this your first baby?

Sue

DollyDaydream

Hurts as much over there as it does over here.....

D D

PS mega congrats on your pregnancy....

KatieStar

Congratulations.

Exactly the same thing happened to us. We had our flights booked and then found out I was pregnant. We had our baby here. We went private as we wanted doctor led care as our first baby was still born. The care I had was fantastic. My doctor was not happy to give me a section as I didn't need one. I was thinking about it as I was nervous after losing my first baby. We didn't have private medical insurance, but got back most of the Dr's fees on Medicare, the hospital bill was dear, but you can claim money back on your tax form at the end of the financial year.

Katie

dave bayliss

THANKS FOR BEING SO USE FULL !!!! YOU MUST HAVE ALOT OF SPARE TIME ON YOUR HANDS

terrym

Congratulations on your fantastic news Jo & Dave.

Hope you don't mind me butting in on your thread, but I'm in the same situation and have a few questions I was wondering if anyone could help me with.

I'm about 8 weeks pregnant - a bit of a surprise, but of course a welcome one. We also already have an 8 month old daughter. We're due to fly out to Brisbane on 2 Feb. I'm hoping to have my 12 week scan before we go. Would anyone be able to help we out with the following?

Are the maternity check ups the same as in the UK? For example, do you have a midwife check up every 4-6 weeks, and do you have scans done at 12 and 20 weeks?

Do I have to register with the local doctor as soon as we arrive to make sure I get on their books for the check ups?

What do I do about health visitor checks for our daughter, like getting her weighed, or just someone I can phone if I need advice on anything?

Where's the best place to find out about ante-natal classes/mother and baby groups?

Sorry about the third degree, but I'm a bit scared about all this! I'll also apologise now because I'll probably be back later with a whole load more questions once I think of them!

Thanks to anyone who can help. If you don't want to clog up this thread, please pm me.

Nat (Mrs terrym)

ABCDiamond

You may find some useful, and relevant info on this Australian Baby related website: http://www.bubhub.com.au/community/forums/

and a more specific Brisbane Parent & Baby site

natty

HI Nat from another Nat !!!!

try this website- it has lots of advice and also forums you can join just like expats only baby stuff !!!!

www.essentialbaby.com.au

As far as I know mostly everything is the same as in the UK- i beliove the first scan is at 10 weeks though not 12 and its the dating scan.

If you are not going private then its best to have midwife driven care through cantenatal classes throughout your pregnancy rather than with a doctor- this is because medicare covers you for midwifery but unless you find a doctor who bulk bills then you would have to pay about $20 each time you visit the doctor and that soon adds up.

My local hospital has a birthing centre- you are booked in there for 4 nights and its like a hotel- it even has a double bed so your partner can stay with you- you have the room all to yourself for the entire time through early labour, delivery and afterwards. You can only have gas and air there though so if any other medical intervention is needed then you would be moved back to the standard labour ward of the hospital

From people O have spoken to, they all say the care here is fantastic and also that going public is better than going private.

hope this helps

Nat

Nat (Mrs terrym)[/QUOTE]

Luke I Amyofath

Hey, no need to shout
Out of interest though, where did you ever conclude I have spare time on my hands ?

MartinLuther

We've had babies in the UK (London) and Australia (Melbourne).

The Melbourne experience was the best. Notably the birthing room was larger and cleaner than the London ones. Also we had 2 mid-wifes looking after us at the critical moment whereas in London we were lucky to have 1.

We specificly went for mid-wife delivery in all cases and we didn't have to pay anything, anywhere (except through taxes).

BadgeIsBack

I pleasantly surprised how many positive public experiences there are - so soon. I was expecting someone back in the Uk to say out 'backward' it is out here!

ABCDiamond

And, do you know what's also good news, if the mum to be is less than about 13 weeks into it all ......

For babies delivered on or after July 1st 2006, the (PR) parent now gets $4,000 maternity grant, up from $3,000 in the current year

http://www.centrelink.gov.au/interne...y_how_maty.htm

banjo

congrats to both the OP and terrym! We came out in the same situation....I was 32 weeks pregnant when we arrived and very nervous about not knowing the system here.

From my experience though, and bearing in mind I'm in regional Victoria, the care was a million times better than what we had in the UK. I can't fault the delivery staff we had in the UK as they did a great job in scarey circumstances to make sure our oldest is alive and kicking.....but the after care was not good.

Here we didn't bother with going private as the town is small so we would have got the same staff and bed anyway. If I was going to have any more children I'd definitely have them here.

Terrym to answer some of your questions: I did go to a doctor within a couple of days of arriving. They were very laid back which didn't help my nerves, but funnily enough they knew their jobs and appointments were made for booking in at the hospital, blood tests and scans and stuff all taken care of - and all without a condescending attitude. Wonderful.

With regard to the health visitor....here they are called maternal health nurse, but they will come and see you at home until they and you feel able to go into your local centre. Which I am sure they will tell you how to find. Let us know where you're moving to and I'll find the number for yours so you can have a chat to her if you like. Again, they will be the best people to tell you about what mother and baby groups etc. are on in your area.

Most of all.....don't be too scared. You'll be fine!
All the best to you both.

terrym

Thanks very much for all this info, it's really helpful.

We're staying in Wellington Point for the first five weeks while we look for somewhere for a longer term rent. This is one of the problems - we're not entirely sure where we're going to end up after the first month, we're probably going to move further down to Gold Coast so it's difficult to be able to choose a doctor/midwife/hospital etc until we decide where we're going, I think that's one of the things that is making me the most nervous.

Nat