Military Families
ChynaDholl
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Blanchfield
ChynaDholl
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Has anyone had any experience with the MWs or OBs here? What is their L&D process like? TIA
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Re: Blanchfield
I'm assuming you're talking about Blanchfield Army Community Hospital at Ft. Campbell. If so, my son was born there in August of 2010 and I had a horrible experience. My entire pregnancy I was treated poorly by their staff. When we did genetic testing done they found that I was a carrier of Cystic Fibrosis. They told me on a voice mail that I was a carrier and my husband needed to be tested. Without any explanation as to how to do the testing we were left confused and very afraid but were never able to reach anyone on the phone nor did they call us back. Even after my husband got the test done they "forgot" to tell us the results until almost a month after they got the information.
Now on to Labor and Delivery. I started having contractions but labored at home for awhile. When I finally went to the hospital they sent me to triage without being admitted or even checked to see what my progress had been so far. I was then forgotten for over 2 hours and my husband wasn't even able to find anyone to come in to help us. When they finally remembered I was there I was already 8 cm and was rushed into a delivery room. My son was born less than 15 minutes later with no sterile equipment and only two scared nurses telling me not to push (at that point I couldn't stop my body from doing it) as they admitted me and hooked me up with IV's.
Now, this was nearly 2 years ago so things could have changed but I will NEVER recommend anyone to go there to have their child. Luckily my son was born healthy at 8lbs 6oz or there would have been some serious problems.
If I were you I would absolutely switch to Standard to be seen off post. If you are on facebook I would check out the page 'Fort Campbell Wives Club'. The ladies there might be able to give you a few suggestions on midwives in the area that take Tricare. We are no longer at Ft. Campbell but I know of a few people that had their babies at both of the hospitals off post and were very happy with their experiences. I hope that you are able to find someone that you like!
And other than the hospital we really miss Ft. Campbell! It had so many things to do within a very short drive and I hope you enjoy your time there!
Thank you! See you're probably the 1 out of 31 that I would see say ANYTHING positive about Blanchfield. I'm happy for you that you didn't have a horrible experience with them
. I don't think I would trust them at all or risk getting DH in trouble because after my first L&D experience, I became very vocal about what I will and won't tolerate and to me, being on a military base won't make a difference.
I think that's what we're going to do as soon as me get there next month. I wanted to join the Army Wives page but we still haven't told everyone we're moving yet because we don't want them to know where we're going just yet. I really don't want to be in a hospital either and since it will be a VB2AC, I think I will compromise for DH's sanity and use a BC instead of at home (though I'm still trying to talk him into it again).
Thank you so much. I'm looking forward to the difference between there and here
I just gave birth at BACH in November 2011, and am actually going through OB with my 2nd pregnancy now. I have to admit, the wait to be seen is terrible. But in all honesty, it's the exact same way in civilian hospitals (I've worked L&D/OB in 2 area hospitals). You are not seen until 10-12 weeks by a MW, and that is generally because you *usually* cannot hear the heartbeat with a doppler until then, and they don't want to panic you as to trying and failing.
I had a wonderful experience with my MW and nurses at the OB clinic. She was very understanding of my complaints and worked with my crazy schedule. My DH deployed when I was 14 weeks, so I went through this alone and she was a great "stand-in". The OB clinic is being remodeled right now, so they are in a temporary location (right outside the hospital) but it really is the exact same as far as being cared for and whatnot.
OB was great as well. I went through a day of fainting 4 times in 20 minutes in my 37th week and they were great in hooking me up to fetal heart rate monitoring and observing me to make sure things were okay. The night I went into labor, the entire floor was full of women in birth, so yes, I had to sit in in the triage room for a little while. But I was still monitored (and checked for progress) and definitely not forgotten. By the time it came for me to deliver, there were no other patients so I had the full attention of the entire staff. They were great in letting me dictate as to where I wanted to be (sitting in a rocking chair, laying in bed, walking the halls, etc) and even went as far as to ordering lunch for me (I didn't have the epidural at this time). And to top it all off, I was in labor for 26 1/2 hours, so I saw multiple shifts of staff, and each one was just as courteous and caring as the previous.
But to be honest, no matter where you look (because Gateway is the area hospital for Clarksville and JSMC for Hopkinsville) you will find negative comments. It is always that way with hospitals and patient care. But you will also find positive comments (not necessarily from the internet, either).
I've had 2 pregnancies at BACH: DS born in Oct 2009 and DD due Aug 2012. With both pregnancies I've had an awesome experience with prenatal care. I had MWs for both of my pregnancies.
My L&D experience, however, was not so pleasant. I arrived at the L&D floor 1.5 hours after my contractions began, in imminent labor. I told the woman at the reception desk that I was in labor. She casually asked me, "Are you having contractions?" as I was standing in front of her, clutching onto the wall for dear life & in obvious pain. I managed to say "Yes" in between contractions. She told me to wait in the waiting area. So I stood in the waiting area and continued to clutch onto the wall. A nurse came in to get a soda and glanced my way and then walked out. My husband managed to park the vehicle and find his way to L&D. He was horrifed to find me in the waiting area. When he went to the front desk to get help, he was told to wait in the waiting area. Finally a nurse came to retrieve us and started chatting away, explaining why we had to walk to then end of the hallway b/c triage was full. She sent me into the bathroom to change into a gown. That's when I let out a blood-curling scream (or grunt). Staff urgency picked up at that point. Several people rushed into the bathroom and pulled me out, put me on a gurney, and wheeled me out of the room (while chatty nurse yelled, "where's she going, where are we taking her?!"). The rest was a blur. I ended up with the natural birth I'd never planned on having. The L&D staff was clearly not as personable (or knowledgeable) as my OB staff had been. Though, the rest of my L&D stay turned out fine; I left within 36 hours of the baby's birth.