Any information appreciated.
Hello I have just moved to Basel, 6 months pregnant and wanted to know how I go about my general checkups? I've moved from the UK where you see the dr/ mwife at regular intervals. Do I make an appt with an obs/gyn for a first checkup in this country and also I have been told with my insurance I must stick to the hospital in my Canton. I have been told the Bruderholz is v. good? But is it true you see which ever dr is on duty for the delivery? Any one else in the same boat and fancies meeting up for decaf coffees and chats, walks, museums?
Not in the same boat as well, but maybe in the next year or two, so I subscribed to some threads. This is the best one I think.
http://www.englishforum.ch/family-ma...s-stories.html
Many posts will also have links to other EF threads with helpful information on check-ups and finding a mid-wife, dr, etc.
Good luck!
Hi, and welcome!
We just went through the whole process, had a beautiful baby daughter this month at Bruderholz. You can choose your ob/gyn, look for recommendations from others. We live a bit outside basel (Canton BL), and had a good one near our place. Yes, for birth at Bruderholz, you cannot have your own midwife (hebamme) with you, they have their own, as well as whichever doctor is on duty takes care.
We found the whole experience at Bruderholz pleasant, and the staff very friendly. You can also look at the Frauenspital in Basel as a possibility.
Another point of contact could be the Basel Childbirth trust ( www.baselchildbirthtrust.com ) before and after pregnancy. There are a couple of birthing classes being offered in English in Basel. For details, send me a pm.
Have a good time and a good birth!
Hello and welcome to the English Forum!
Congratulations and best wishes with your pregnancy too.
I visited my sis-in-law when she gave birth to my nephew at the hospital in Bruderholz and their facility does indeed seem quite nice. The nurses who stopped in to visit while we were there seemed patient and caring as did the midwife who checked up on her while we were there as well.
Meanwhile, my own experiences were at the Frauenspital here at the Uni Basel hospital. Everyone was quite amazing, from the cleaning staff who came to my room as well as the nurses, midwives and the variety of doctors that I saw. All of the doctors and nurses I spoke with spoke English and the nurses happy to chat for a few when they had time during rounds.
So, either hospital, I think you'll be pleased with the care you receive.
No experience of giving birth in Switzerland to offer, but just wanted to say that this really, really won't matter at the time. I too fretted about 'but I won't know the doctor/ what if I get to know a midwife and then she goes off shift, fret fret'.
As it turns out, I had an extended labour spread over two hospitals and innumerable staff. They were all marvellous, and they were all greatly skilled at making me feel very bonded to them and settled within a matter of moments. You make friends very quickly during life's extremes!
Good luck for the rest of the pregnancy and welcome to Switzerland - it's a lovely place for families.
kodokan
I actually want to second this, although maybe it is one of those things that is different for different women.
I was in labor for a while, a lot longer than the midwives and doctors were happy about due to the situation and there WAS a shift change.
All three teams of staff who were with me through the first night were fantastic - from the Frau ER staff to both doctor / nurse / midwife teams who sat with me and helped me through labor proceedings.
Everyone was kind, warm and caring. The first midwife sat and spoke to me to help soothe me, the second shift midwife put some aroma therapy oil on to burn and massaged my back... they both were really fantastic in their own way and they both asked how my preference was before they did anything that was "unusual" for me.
When it comes down to it, the medical teams who deal with pregnant women, (possibly) particularly the ones involved in the birthing process tend to be very well suited and even better trained to the job at hand and do everything they can to help make any necessary transitions that may come up as comfortable for the mother as possible.
Yeah, I agree. We had a similar experience, with extended labour over 2 shifts at the hospital. One of the midwives actually consoled my wife when going off-shift, that sometimes a new midwife with other ideas and a fresh outlook manages to make things better during labour.
But, I guess, having a trusted midwife with you is also a good thing.
My 5 raps
You will need your own Obs/Gyn specialist who may or may not attend the birth depending on
1) if they are desk bound or not; not all specialists work outside of their practice - so you need to specifically ask when you choose one
2) your insurance status - depending on what cover you get you will or will not be able to choose the Dr and the hospital
As a newbie who is already pregnant your premiums may be a bit higher (i.e. vs. someone who got cover before being pregnant).
There's a insurance consultant (Jenny) on the EF. I also know of a company that operates in Basel and speak English - PM me if you want the details.
Normally you'll see them more often (especially if it is your first) based on what friends who had children in the UK have told us (we had all 3 of our children here in CH).
Scrap my comment about chosing hospitals - I see your insurance company have already told you. If you are not happy with this, you can change your level of cover (at cost of course) to choose another hospital.
I guess you need to check if you can take your Obs/Gyn specialist with you.
We had all 3 at Bethesda. Really good, though we had cover for private wards so our view may be squewed. All three were by c-section though. What was really nice is that they offer you a 4-course meal voucher for you and hubby to use up to one year post birth (I think) and they will take the baby to the wards and babysit for you while you enjoy the meal. Nice touch IMO.
Bethesda is a good hospital, but it is private and if something goes wrong, you could end up there and your child at the children's hospital.
I've been told that the Frauenspital had an refit/upgrade a couple of years ago and is also very good.
You can arrange to have visits at the hospital to see what you think. If you are unsure take advantage of this and go see what you think about the hospitals.
See comment above - it is all about the insurance cover you have. You'll need to check/ask.
Finally of course: good luck!
Well, welcome to Basel and congratulations! Having had two babies here myself I have to say, it's a good place to be pregnant, have a baby and bring up a child. [Really ]
Over here you will not see a midwife / health visitor for any checkups. You will have monthly checkups with an ob/gyn - or you can also choose to do it at the hospital if you prefer. Most people go with an ob/gyn. Very few of these seem to actually "do" the birth part. If you just go for the regular insurance i.e. non-private, then you will get whoever is on duty at the time for the birth. But really, this is absolutely fine - all the midwives I've met here are excellent and really know what they are doing. Most are multi-lingual and also very skilled with non-verbal communication. You will also find that they know about alternative therapies too which is great - aromatherapy, reflexology, massage, they do it all!
It's probably best to just get an appointment with a gynae and go through all the options and how it all works with them. If you only have basic insurance then the hospital is chosen for you - Bruderholz if you live in BL, Frauenspital if you live in BS. If you have any complications then this might be different.
Bruderholz is lovely, Frauenspital too (especially since it's makeover), and my first baby was born in Liestal and they were great as well. One thing worth knowing is that at all of these hospitals, if you have the "lowest of the low" insurance, this will have you sharing a room - but if you are willing to pay a couple of hundred francs a night you can upgrade to your very own private en-suite room (assuming there is one available). Definitely worth it!
And for sure, join the Basel Childbirth Trust www.baselchildbirthtrust.com they do a heck of a lot in terms of socialising, playgroups, advice, classes, info etc. in Basel. The Having a Baby in Basel booklet will answer all your questions about where, how, insurance, midwife, after the birth etc. I've been a member for about 6 years now, since I was pregnant with my first.
Actually there's a big BCT event at the Dreirosenfreizeithalle on the 24th April - it's open to everyone and should be a good "do", worth popping over to check us out!
Funny, I went the other way (in the UK). I had my son by c-section and was wheeled into a private room about 1am. By mid-afternoon the next day, I was clamouring to be moved into a general ward - I wanted to talk endlessly about my delivery, show people my lovely new baby, swap notes on recovery, etc. I'm normally quite a private, 'need my own space' sort of person, but really, really needed to share the experience of birth with equally interested people.
It was marvellous in my little ward for four people - a sort of very medical, all-girls-together-at-boarding-school sort of atmosphere. And the other mums are very handy for keeping an eye on your sleeping baby whilst you nip for a shower.
Of course, I appreciate this might be all very different here, and much more demanding in a foreign language.
kodokan
At Bethesda we were able to pay for me to stay, so that I worked during the day and spent the nights in the hospital. Was great and almost like a holiday.
Thanks for all the responses, really helpful and lots of info there