6 weeks Pregnant and panicking

K

Kaydee

Registered User
Hi,
My husband and i are 6 weeks pregnant and have no idea what has to be done for the next 10 months. I got a positive on my HPT and went running to a OBGYN in MongKok (Dr. Dora Lau)
I have heard that private hospitals here charge you like crazy and public hospitals are pretty good. But lately i read about a case in the newspaper where the public hospital doctors dropped a new born baby..pretty sad :( Is it always like that or am i just worrying? is it safe to go to public hospitals now?
Also, if i have to go to the doctor every month for scanning and testing, can that be done in the public hospitals?
 
Public hospitals deliver tens of thousands of babies every year and dropped one. Accidents happen. No it is not always like that. In public hospitals you will not be given a scan every month. I'm assuming you are a HK resident (with HKID, no need to be permanent resident) so you can pay the low fee at public hospitals. If you register early (NOW!), you are more likely to get an early down syndrome screening scan and blood test at 12-14 weeks, an 20-week anomaly scan, and then see a doctor at about 6 months (may not have any scan), and then more frequent as you get closer to due date. If you want monthly scans and check-ups, you have to go to a private doctor for it. Many people do that.
 
how many babies are born in hk in public hospitals every year? accidents can happen anywhere. i don't know the case to which you are referring but i'm sure that if you picked any city in say, the USA, there would be at least one accident per year regarding babies.

you do NOT need scans every month, unless you are high risk. many private doctors will do scans every month (1) because many patients who use them have insurance that will pay for it and (2) because they can charge and make money from each and ever scan.

the public hospital will take care of you medically, quite well. there are drawbacks to they system, though, one of which is waiting times.

we took my 7 year old to the accident and emergency dept on tuesday afternoon, after he had a fall. we arrived around 445pm and were in to see the dr by 5pm, who then sent us for xrays, we had the xrays taken before 515 and were back in the dr office by 530pm. my son had to be admitted because the a&e wasn't sure if he would need surgery for the 2 broken bones in his foot. so, we were then admitted & sent upstairs to the pediatrics ward. we arrived there by about 6pm. we didn't get to see the dr until almost 930pm. they then put a 1/2 cast on his foot until the next morning. yesterday morning, they decided he didn't need surgery, only a full cast. they took him for another xray @7am, then put on the full cast @ 10am. we then had to wait for yet another xray, to ensure that the cast had the foot in the correct position... we waited until 1pm for that... then had to wait for the doctor to come round again, which took until 4pm. he let us go home for the night, but we had to be back by 8am this morning, so drs could check circulation etc one more time. we got there around 8 and saw the dr around 9am. we then had to wait to be discharged and were finally let go around 2pm this afternoon.

now, i know that it wasn't a birth story (you can search around for mine... 2005 & 2007) but it is typical of the public system.

they will do all the tests they deem necessary for your situation. there are some tests they won't do and those ones you can have done privately.
 
Yes, as jt06 said, making your booking now! I'm at Week 5+4 days and registered at a public hospital 2 days ago. I'm now scheduled for the OSCAR in my Week 12. Even if you are planning to go private, it's always a good idea to register for the public hospital just in case, I guess.

Registering is pretty simple, all you need are your and the dad's HKID card(original), your doctor's confirmation of your pregnancy, and your proof of address. We registered at Kwong Wah and it took us probably 30 minutes in total and it didn't even cost us a cent! :)

Once you've got your space booked, it should feel less overwhelming.
 
I just delivered at a public hospital (not Queeen Mary) on Monday and also did all my antenatal check ups with the same hospital. I found the service to be fine. Just without all the luxuries of a top rate private hospital. I was considered a high risk pregnancy (high blood pressure and gestational diabetes and was supposed to be induced but went into labour naturally the day of the scheduled induction!) and my BB has ended up in the neonatal unit for 5 days. So I dread to think what this would have cost me at a private hospital! My hospital charges on discharge were $150 (I was in hospital for total of 36 hours - they asked if I was ready to leave and I decided that I would really be able to get more rest at home). I am not sure what the cost will be for BB as he is still in hospital (expected to be discharged on Saturday). The delivery went very well, I stayed at home as long as possible and once I arrived at hospital I was able to go straight into a delivery room and my husband was able to join me after about an hour. The nurses were very supportive and guided me through the labour. And I was informed of what was happening at all times. I also found that the hospital was not as busy as I expected! (With all the reports in the paper I was expecting it to be crowded) My ward was not full while I was there and the nurses didn't seem rushed off their feet. Overall I found the public hospital experience exceeded my expectations and would not hesitate to use it again in future if I have more children.
 
Jt06:
Thanks! and yes we both have our hkid cards. will do the booking asap. the delay was because my doctor gave us 2 weeks time this monday to think about where to have the baby..here or somewhere outside hk.. we have decided to have our baby here, so i guess i will give my doctor a call today and try to get the letter from her.

Carang:
Sorry to here about ur son!! hope he is fine now.

lumiere:
great to knw.. congratulations:) so i have a company for the next 9 months. we will get the registration done today asap.
thanks and take care.

M_c:
Congratulations:) Hope ur baby is okai now..,i wish u cud take ur baby home as soon as possible..
i live in tung chung and will probably register at princess Margaret in laiking. was a bit paranoid before but i guess i am okai now:)
after the discussion i m thinking of having the baby in the public hospital and check-ups privately..
can u guys suggest a good obgyn around here or near-by..
 
today is a public holiday as is tomorrow, sunday and monday. wait until tuesday to do anything else.
 
Just thought I would update you on the cost for the neonatal unit. Total for 6 days was $250! The nurses and doctors were all wonderful there but luckily baby wasn't really very sick and the admission was more of a precaution than anything else.

Just remember when at the public hospital that it is a no-frills service but it still gets the job done - at a fraction of the price!
 
I think the doctor dropping baby incident was in a private hospital and not a public one, if you're referring to the case that happened in 2011. The public system does not offer scans at every visit...but they are offering the Down's scan free so if you register before week 12-14 they will arrange it for you. If you go after that, as long as you are eligible (ie - hold an HKID card, doesn't have to be permanent residency) and fall within the catchment area, they won't turn you away. They won't arrange the first visit, which is basically a registration, till week 10 no matter how early you call.
 
Hi ladies, i have registered in Queen Mary and they will only do the first check up around week 10-11. So i am going to see a private doctor first to get the reference letter as you need that to take to the public hospital. Sounds like public hospital is quite okay in HK, even though i am still deciding whether to go for private or public. Any suggestions?
Also if you have any good doctor you know on HK island side, please kindly let me know.
 
I have heard lots of women recently going public, but spending the money with a midwife service (annerley i think?) for regular check ups which i think is a great idea vs the cost of private. I would do so myself however i have a few medical issues which means i have to schedule a c-section under the care of a obstetrician. YOu refer to 'scans' but as you can imagine there's more to pregnancy than that and if you like the idea of having the additional support, why not buy the private midwifery package?
 
I think i have decided to go to QM but with Private OB for check up etc. I think in this case, you have the best of both in case there is any complications, you are in the right spot for it. But throughout the pregency, you will have the specilised doctor to see you and answer any questions. We will see maybe i will change my mind about it but i think it is more sensible at this stage.
Just wondering for the prenetal service, i am still not very clear on what to expect. Private Ob will only look after the check up and progress of the baby. So i dont know if QM provide the service or not...or should i register with Annerley anyway?
Any suggestions?
 
Clare, when you register at a public hospital, they will schedule regular antenatal check-ups for you at their maternal and child health care centre. This generally involves a weight/blood pressure/urine check, a consultation with a nurse who will listen for your babies heartbeat with a Doppler and if needed, will refer you to see a doctor who might arrange ultrasound scans.

In addition, you can choose to see a private OB for antenatal checks too. Between these two you should be covered so there's no point registering with Annerly as well. Some people would choose to go with Annerley instead of the private OB checkups.
 
carang said:
what service are you unsure that QMH provides? of course QMH/Tsan Yuk do prenatal checks...
Click to expand...

It's not that i am unsure about the service at QMH, it's the unknown factor. As many of the mothers mentioned, QMH might not provide the full check up etc so i just want to make sure i am fully covered...sounds like by Charade's answer, i will be okay.
 
The public hospitals provide all the check ups that are needed. If there is something that they don't provide or can't (e.g. I had to get my 20 week scan done privately as the hospital was fully booked) they will tell you so that you can arrange it with your private doctor. Really there is no need to have a scan everytime you have a check up. This is just the private doctors way of charging so much! In total I only had 4 scans done during my entire pregnancy - 2 privately (1 to confirm pregnancy and 1 for the 20 week scan) and 2 at the hospital (1 for the downs syndrome screening and 1 to check baby's size at 28 weeks due to gestational diabetes).
 
mc i dont think 'cost' is necessarily the issue with the scans. I am on a package with my private ob and she does a routine scan each visit, at no extra cost. She has the machine in the room...it doesnt 'cost' her any more money to do a quick check. I think the reason why private doctors charge so much is because they are 'private' and in my assessment cost about the same as other developed countries per visit.
I agree that you don't need the scans at every visit though..
 
of course, they will include a scan if they already have the machine... it means they can charge more for this "added" service. do you honestly think that the private doctors without the fancy new machines charge the same as your doctor?

when referring to "costs" they are not referring to the costs the doctor incurs. they are referring to the costs the patient incurs by visiting that doctor.

while a scan every visit is nice, it is most definitely not necessary for non-complicated pregnancies. there is no medical need for scan every visit for the vast majority of pregnancies.
 
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