ballerina

Thank you thank you thank you everyone for all your messages and opinions and tales from experience, it has been really really helpful. the past couple of weeks I've been trying to find out as much as possible what will happen if I'm in La Spezia, I have to say, so far, i'm not really impressed..

WE went to a private gynaecologist who was recommended by a collegue of OH, he was ok, BUT when I explained about my coccyx, he started talking about 'ossa sacra' and how it would be no problem at all etc ... I only realised after that the ossa sacra is not the same bone as the coccyx. Also, he charged 100E just for a flaming chat!!! This is the thing I can't get my head around, everyone we have spoken to has said we should get a private gynae, because the free service doesn't follow your progress (i can't actually believe that, surely they would keep notes or whatever?) and the private is so much better. So far, I can't see any evidence that it is so much better.. I mean, to be paying so much money, I expect the doctor to have the latest eqipment, a nice office and nice chairs in the waiting room at least! The place was as shabby as any other doctor's surgery I've been to in La Spezia.

I have a couple of other numbers for gynaecologists to try but really, I'm not sure we can afford 100e every month, not to mention the 175 we have spent so far on the blood tests (with a million more to come by the lokos of the list the gynae gave us!) Can anyone tell me really why it is so much better to pay a private doctor when the service, so far, doesn't seem any better, any more high tech or any more pleasant??

He mentioned a 'libretto' we should get, maybe that is the little book with the list of appointments by dates, i was not sure, neither was OH, but when we went to the place (I'm sorry, I don't know what they call it here but it was the place where they offer the free service!), they said that they didn't do that book anymore. hmmmmmm.

Last weekend I had to go to pronto soccorso, I thought I was having a mini stroke(melodramatic!) but it was just a strange migraine. I saw a gynaecologist there who was very good, AND he spoke english, which was really helpful, it meant that I could explain exactly what I meant and know I was being understood, and i could understand exactly what he said too. Do you think it would be possible that he takes private patients? or maybe he works for the free service? is this likely? The old ladies who worked at the place where we were supposed to get the libretto didn't seem very nice..like old headmistresses, very severe

I get the feeling that 'bedside manner' is a concept that hasn't caught on here, in La spezia anyway; I teach English and one of the lessons, the students have a question 'do you have a nice doctor?' they ALL always shudder and say, 'oh no!'. I asked a student about it once and he said that maybe it's because in general, people from La Spezia are just not very nice!!!! However, the nurses who did the IV for me at pronto soccorso were pretty brutal with the needles and a bit flippant, chucking the needle wrappers and blood soaked cotton swabs all over me!!! ('oops, i made the hole wrong, i'll have to make another hole' and then just left the blood pouring out of the wrong hole down my arm! I have big bruises a week later!)


However, your reassuring stories have helped put my mind at rest. Thank you everyone!

37100

Wow. €100 just for a chat. Ok, you were a new patient, but our private doctors don't charge if we just need a clarification. You weren't comfortable with him. Don't go to him.
Ask at the hospital if the dr visits privately. Either at the nurses station or where you book appointments. It's 50/50 if he visits privately either at the hospital or in a studio. If he visits on the health service you might not always be able get an appointment with him. Here at least, that depends on hospital or dept. policy and the dr. For example, hubby uses the eye department here and the booking staff book the first available appointment so he pops in to see his dr and she books one for him with her directly. Seeing your cicumstances, your nice dr might be prepared to do the same for you. You could always send you hubby along (in uniform, if I remember rightly) to ask.
Do try the consultorio. Some of the desk staff at ours are a bit snotty, but the mainly female medical staff are lovely.

Stellina

Hi Ballerina, sorry to hear about your stressful time. You should defnitely followup the "libretto" thing because you shouldn't have to pay for all the blood tests, you're right there are loads. I had the libretto but saw a lovely private gyno every month (she was 100 euro a month ). I guess you've already asked around your friends if they can reccommend someone nice? You could always try the Italian "forum al femminile" and ask on there if there is anyone in La Spezia who can reccommend someone.

LivingHere

I've had two children here. The first time I tried to do things my way and only saw my gp rather than go to the antenatal clinic. She was always sending me too late for scans and stuff.

The second time I got referred to the clinic at the hospital from the start. I always saw the same doctor, he did all my scans and I only paid the ticket for my bloodtests. I think about fifty euro in total.

I always felt safe, which I think is more important than anything.

ballerina

thanks again to everyone for the tips and advice. The main drag is trying to convince OH that by paying a fortune doesn't really mean getting a better service does it? He, his colleagues and mother all think that you have to pay to go privately because 'they don't follow your progress' if you do it the public way. But like Lorna said in the other thread, there is no guarantee anyway that the gynaecologist will even be there when the baby arrives!

The thing i'm a bit concerned about now is that when we went for the libretto, they said they didn't do it anymore. As far as I understand, the libretto is like a voucher booklet so you don't pay for the tests, you take out the page (voucher) and give it to them in return for tests? Is that right? so if they don't do it anymore, is that like going to a dentist and them saying they aren't taking anymore NHS patients? I'm confused on that one. Also, I don't have my tessera sanitaria yet as the bloody office is only open from 8.30 until 11.30 and you end up queueing and then having to leave to avoid being late for work! Maybe not having the tessera sanitaria is a problem. I have my IHIC, but they never seem to recognise it, although I did get to see a GP without all of thatonce before, but because OH came with me.

One more Q... the last gyno i saw, the 100e one, he wanted to do a smear test, even though I told him i'd had one last year and it was fine. Ithought that was a bit weird, and when I spoke to my mum, she thought it could be dangerous to start messing around and scraping the cervix etc. He was talking about doing all these 'exploratory examinations' and wanting to get my legs in the stirrups... i was only 4 weeks pregnant!!! I think it's a bit over the top but I accept that if this is how it's done in Italy, then I'll have to get on with it. However, i've heard about wives of OH's colleagues changing gynos alot because of perverts... now maybe they were being prudish, but what is the point of exploratory examinations so early on? I'm not sick, i'm just pregnant!

K in Modena

Not every region has his libretto- I didn't have one- so maybe that's what they meant?
I had a lovely gyno at the consultorio (the free place!)- do check it out. The "gate keepers" (secretaries, etc) at doctor's surgeries can be famously difficult in the UK too but that doesn't mean the doctor is!
I was given a smear test when I was pregnant as I hadn't had one in a while, it's apparently perfectly safe. If you're not comfortable about the invasive tests though (I never had any) change doctor. Try the free ones- you can always change again if you're not happy with them.
Good luck!

K in Modena

Oh and by the way some Italian ladies who run a language school I have worked at both went through the consultorio for their pregnancies. They were very satisfied and said that some Italian women don't like to go there as they say it's for "immigrants", but this was a silly attitude and the service is very good!

ballerina

Ah! that's it then! I knew there must be a silly reason for all OH's colleagues and MIL saying we must go private! OK, my mind is very much at rest now, thank you! And yes, so right about the 'gatekeepers'!

Cashmere Kate

When I was at the consultorio a couple of weeks ago, I saw one Italian girl out of about 20 patients. Where I live, at least, it seems to be seen as a place for young girls who don't want their parents to know they're having sex and immigrants without permessi di soggiorno because they get free treatment.

primavera73

Hi - I would definitely recommend the consultori. I used them for both my pregnancies and the service was much better than private consulatations - and free! I think often it is just snobbishness that stops people using them. By the way, I broke my coccyx during labour with my first son and decided to opt for a c-section second time round (although that wasn't the only reason). My gynae sent me to a specialist to see whether he thought there was a risk of damaging it again in labour and he thought there could be. It could be worth getting it checked out.

primavera73

Forgot to say - this time round we bought almost all our baby equipment - baby bouncers, chairs etc from amazon.co. uk - sooooo much cheaper than Italy and no delivery charges over £25 either.

Lorna at Vicenza

There is amazon.it now as well and free delivery on orders over 19 euro.

(Not as well stocked yet as the UK version though but worth checking out and comparing prices).

DaniL

amazon.it doesn't have much baby stuff yet, I've looked! bimbomarket.it is still expensive by UK standards but if you sign up for emails they are always doing 10/15 % off something or other! And subito is good for 2nd hand stuff, I've found sellers on there really helpful. I don't have a car and people always seem willing to deliver stuff like cots and high chairs, I suppose it's worth it for them!
If you know people at home who will post stuff thats ideal really. Mothercare won't deliver here any more (I was told) and they are great for basics like socks, bibs and babygrows. Also sock-ons, they're amazing!

MissSP

Hi Ballerina

I had my little boy last February and went through the whole system in Italy. If I wrote all my advice on here we'd be here all day so it's just easier to either PM or speak to each other if you need a bit of advice. If you want to get in touch let me know and I can give you my phone number or preferably we can chat on Skype. I don't have advice on your region, but I'm in Lombardia and given it was quite a recent experience I should be able to help.

Best wishes and congrats on the pregnancy! Hope you are feeling well.

Sarah

nadia8

Hi there. Congrats on your pregnancy. I can't tell you about la spezia but I've had two kids here in Emilia Romagna, little boy in 2007 and little girl in 2010. I was really pleased both with the birth and pregnancy in general. I went to a private doctor both times but to be honest there isn't really any difference. The difference is that some private ones do an eco every visit, ( as in my first preg) and I personally liked that, others only do the 3 free eco s ( 3 months , 5 months, 7 months) which are free for everybody anyway. If, as in my second preg they don't do any more ecos then I don't think it's worth the money. I had both kids without any gas or anything. In emilia romagna some hospitals do epidurals others don't, depending on the size of the hospital.
congrats again x Oh, I didn't pay for any kind of blood urine glucose tests during preg.