Can I request the labour record?
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URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=14819
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Topic: Can I request the labour record?
Posted By: emz
Subject: Can I request the labour record?
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 1:08am
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Don't know where I should put this, but figure general will do...
Can I get my labour record from someone? And do I have to have a good reason? Should I ask the m/w I had, or should my GP have it? I just have so many questions about the labour as I was quite out to it and don't remember much, good or bad. Plus I really want some answers as to why I didn't get to hold Jack straight away or have skin to skin. They never actually told me what was wrong with him (or me) and I want to know. I think until I know I'm going to continue to feel robbed but don't know if you're allowed the labour report unless you provide a valid reason? (ie to provide a specialist with it or something). Any advice would be appreciated! 
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Replies:
Posted By: my2angels
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 6:48am
| you should have been given a copy anyway. I know with both my births i was given a copy of the records the same day as the birth so yes I would definately ask if you want one. Your midwife should have given it to you so i would ask her. |
Posted By: kebakat
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 7:22am
| I got given 3 copies and since it's part of your medical records now you can definitely get a copy. MW and GP should have it. |
Posted By: peanut butter
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 7:24am
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I was given a copy too but while I was in hospital and had a mini meltdown about everything (at 10pm just as my MW texted me) she told me to ask to see my notes and to read through everything. I have a medical background so I could understand them and it made such a difference to how in control of everything I felt!
The other thing my MW and OB did was ask me a few days later if I was happy with how things went. I also had a traumatic time when he was born and only got to hold him while they cut the cord and then I didnt see him again for 9 hours!!! If I could get hold of the megab*tch MW at the hospital that kept telling me I had "lights on but noone home" I'd give her a piece of my mind. I think it is INCREDIBLY important to get that debriefing. You own your records so I dont think you shouldhave any problem getting a copy......and it makes for really interesting reading months on too. |
Posted By: peachy
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 8:21am
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I too got 3 copies of my labour record when I was discharged. Your GP should also have been sent a copy as when I went to the GP for Laurens 6 week check up, he said "man, you had a hell of a labour didn't you", yep I definately did!! ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: ElfsMum
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 8:41am
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i got two copies...and a yellow page of stuff..and all the notes are very very detailed in my pink book as well.... ------------- Mum to two amazing boys! |
Posted By: myfullhouse
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 9:10am
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I got a couple of copies as well, one for me and one to give to my GP.
You should definately ask ------------- Lindsey 
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Posted By: mummy_becks
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 9:44am
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What you can do is go to the hospital you gave birth at and request a copy of the notes. In Palmy you have have to fill in a form and then they send them out to you about 2 weeks later. ------------- I was a puree feeder, forward facing, cot sleeping, pram pushing kind of Mum... and my kids survived! |
Posted By: Bel
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 10:26am
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I got mine, but they kept forgetting to give them to me - eventually I had to ring and say I was coming in that day to pick them up. Was a great way to reconcile your memory with what happened...
Definitely ask for them emz ------------- Mum to two beautiful kids 
Luke (09.11.2007) Amy (01.04.2009) |
Posted By: KH25
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 12:02pm
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I wasn't given mine but requested them late last year. I rung the hospital who posted me a form to fill in and it took another month or so for them to send it all out to me. But mine was really long as I was admitted Thursday midday and didn't give birth until Monday morning. But it was really interesting reading and both DH and I commented how at the time they seemed a bit useless and not doing much to help me but they actually were monitoring me really closely ------------- Kelly, mum to DD, 19Jun06 (26wks 1lb15oz) DS1, 24Oct10 (32wks 4lb11oz) and DS2, 31Dec11 (32wks, 4lb11) http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: fire_engine
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 12:16pm
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Yup, you can definitely request - you probably need to contact the ward and they can arrange it. I know at my work, the request usually needs to be in writing and if you review them in person, a staff member reviews them with you so they can explain everything. Otherwise, your MW should be able to expain it to you. ------------- Mum to two wee boys |
Posted By: monster
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 12:22pm
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Hope you don't mind me asking, but are these the computer print out things? My pink book is super detailed, but the print out is just one page with bits of info under all sorts of headings - is that all it should be? Birth was straight forward, no pain relief and had only been there for 3 1/2 hours before birth, so not much to say, but is that what you're asking about? Or is there something else I should be looking for? -------------   
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Posted By: Peanut
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 12:40pm
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You should have been given them from your MW. It should have a front sheet that is the print out and then a photocopy of the notes from the day.
Ask your MW first as she should still have your records emz. -------------  
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Posted By: aimeejoy
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 1:31pm
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I would also ask for a debrief with your midwife as well. I havent been given notes either time, but when I did my birth plan for Greer, we went over my labour with Hannah and it is amazing how differnet the real version of events was compared to my spaced out version. I think the sooner you can talk to her about it, the sooner you can move on from it. I put off having more babies for ages because I was so scared of doing it again, but if I had of just gone through it earlier I wouldnt have been so worried. ------------- Aimee Hannah 22/10/05 Greer 11/02/08 |
Posted By: ElfsMum
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 1:50pm
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monster me too..where are you? i think pretty standard in chch to just have detailed in pink book and one page summary on discharge.. ------------- Mum to two amazing boys! |
Posted By: Kicker
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 1:59pm
Thats sounds about the same as mine - i was at the hospital for about 2hrs. I was wondering what everyone else had written. Maybe ours was short because we weren't there for long? -------------  
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monster wrote:Posted By: mummy_becks
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 2:06pm
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Sometimes (usually if you are admitted to hospital), you have your birth written on the hospital forms and not your book. Ring the hospital and ask to speak to medical records they will tell you what you need to do. The piece of paper you are talking about I think is your discharge summary. ------------- I was a puree feeder, forward facing, cot sleeping, pram pushing kind of Mum... and my kids survived! |
Posted By: emz
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 2:52pm
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I was given the paediatrician report from when Jack was 1 day old but that's it. What is the pink book? Is that like the Johnson's pregnancy book or something?
Might ring my m/w about it, but she'll probably ask questions which is annoying. She was great during the labour as there were so many things to monitor, but she was so busy I was talked about, not to, when everyone was coming in and out. I was thinking about it so much last night that I didn't go to bed until 2am (as you can probably tell from the time of my first post in this topic!) I think I really just need some closure. My labour was in no way as bad as some others but I really just feel like I was a spectator (from a long way away) and not actually part of the whole experience 
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Posted By: yummymummy
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 4:13pm
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All I got was the discharge summary - 3 copies and there's not much on there. While in hospital, I asked to look at the notes and was given those - we were there for 10 days so there were a lot of notes but I found it quite interesting to read.
I'd say if you want the 'full' notes, you'll need to talk to the hospital ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: KH25
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 4:21pm
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Most of my notes were observations from the nurses - so however often I was looked at, they would go back and write down their findings. There were also notes from each time the Neonatal Pead came to see me while I was in labour (4 days) and also visit from other medical professionals. The few hours before I gave birth, in the delivery suite were entries about when I had a VE and how far dilated, when pain relief was given, when waters broke, all with times which was very interesting as I was quite spaced out and time flew so wasn't aware of a lot of it. The one page with various heading will be your discharge summary. ------------- Kelly, mum to DD, 19Jun06 (26wks 1lb15oz) DS1, 24Oct10 (32wks 4lb11oz) and DS2, 31Dec11 (32wks, 4lb11) http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: monster
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 4:31pm
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Thanks, so I've got the summary then, and all the notes were written in my pink book (the one I had all the way through pregnancy, where the mw wrote up all our visits etc).
Kawwww - I'm in Wgtn, but didn't go there - went to Kenepuru Hospital so my midwife was the only one involved - she wrote all the notes in the book, so that must be all the notes there are for me. Emz, I think it's really important that you get a chance to talk through it all with your midwife (more than once if you need to). You deserve the chance to have your questions answered. My mw certainly asked me many times (on different visits) if there was anything I wanted explained, any questions about what had happened on the day and why, etc. -------------
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Posted By: myfullhouse
Date Posted: 27 February 2008 at 8:47pm
I got a discharge page printed from the computer. But I also got my MW's hand written notes from throughout the labour that detailed everything from any medications, each time she took Jack's hard rate to the fact that she made me toast afterwards and the time that jack first fed. Maybe this is what was written in your Pink book? ------------- Lindsey
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