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NICU at Welcare Hospital

talka247568

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 12 September 2011 - 09:24

Hello,

Does anyone know anything about the quality and expertise of the NICU unit at the Welcare Hospital? Will be having a baby in February and my first was in the NICU back in Canada due to breathing complications so we are sensitive to this issue.

I know that in Abu Dhabi, the NICU units at private hospitals don't measure up to the standards at the public hospitals (Corniche and Rahba). Is it the same in Dubai?

lilythepink

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 14 September 2011 - 21:12

My only experience of NICU care is at City Hospitol, I had my ds there about five months ago, he was full term but developed a serious infection almost immediately after birth, he subsequently spent two weeks in nicu and later had to be re admitted three separate occasions, i cannot speak hightly enough of the doctors and nurses there, I will be eternally grateful for what they did for me and my son, I sought second opinions when I went back to europe over the summer and I was told that ds got excellent care in Dubai, I strongly believe we would not have got better care anywhere in the world, amazing is an understatement,

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Muzza135543

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 14 September 2011 - 19:14

Hi again I meant to add to my post that I think the communication thing is a local problem - I think they are less used to being asked searching questions whereas at home for us that's considered totally the norm. I say this a year on from our experience and from the fortunate position of having a well and now growing baby, but the stress and emotional strain of the experience combined with that 'cultural' clash makes for a tricky situation. I suspect that the Doctors especially may not be so well trained in the empathetic field! For nurses it's more likely to be second nature. I would add again that I think they are marvellous there when all is said and done...xx

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talka247568

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 14 September 2011 - 12:12

Thanks for your reply Romeoandfinn. Would you say that the communication problem was something particular to Welcare or is this something that is typical in the region? I've had a few emergency visits with my boys in Abu Dhabi and haven't experienced the best bedside manner from some the physicians.

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romeoandfinn30473

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 13 September 2011 - 10:04

Hi there, Sorry you are going to have to consider NICU care, but good idea to find out where the best is! Our first son was born early at 30 weeks an dspent 7 weeks in NICU in the UK. I delivered our second son 7 weeks ago, only 4 weeks early than kfully this time. He had a couple of problems and spent 48 hours in the NICU at welcare. We felt that the care itself was very good, but the communication was awful between doctors/nurses/parents. We actually had several stand offs with them in the 48 hours we were there. The neonatologist our son was and still is under, Dr Mudit is very good and a reasonable guy, so would recommend him. The staff were nice, but we felt that they very much err on the side of caution all the time, eg our son really only had probs because the natural delivery was fast and he was very full of (clean) amniotic fluid and had low blood sugar. What he really needed was a bit more one on one attention - in the UK they have special care baby units (SCBU) which are a step up from the maternity ward, and a step down from the intensity of NICU. Having said that, looking back although it was a stressful time, we were pleased with the care he got and the follow up care we have had from Welcare has been excellent. Some of the pediatricians lack bedside manner when dealing with parents, but just stand your ground and dont let them leave until you are absolutely in full undertsnading of what is going on. We went and spoke to the staff when we did our hospital tour, that made us feel better and we knew where the nicu was etc. The delivery at welcare (natural) was great, and so was the maternity care, so all things in balance, i would def recommend it.

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talka247568

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 12 September 2011 - 22:50

Thanks for your responses and for sharing your experiences. Do you know if a neonatologist is available at the hospital 24 hours a day? Hope your little ones are doing well.

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Muzza135543

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 12 September 2011 - 22:14

I'm sorry you had a bad experience twin butterfly. Hope it's some reassurance to you talka2 but my experience there was completely the opposite. For me the team there are fantastic - they and the neonatologist saved my daughter's life. She came 3 months early and was there 2 months and I guess my experience has coloured my view slightly as I would of course sing their praises! We did have issues around accounts (in the end insurance was sorted) and I found that very upsetting, however this was more the business end of the hospital and it helped me to separate this from clinical care in my mind. It is my understanding that, Al Wasl aside, Welcare has about the best NICU facilities in Dubai, particularly in the care given to extremely prem or vulnerable babies. The nurses were fantastic and they answered each and every question I had - they are supportive and knowledgeable and I learnt a huge amount from them. The neonatologist we saw relatively frequently (you need to know when he does his rounds 9-10am I think and then it's no issue getting time to see him). When there was an issue (actually breathing/ cardio related) he called us at home. They are pro kangaroo care and promote BM as much as possible, although I had mixed feedback in weaning my daughter to the breast after tube feeding - in the end I just demand fed. HTH - all the very best with your pregancy

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twin_butterfly

574

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 12 September 2011 - 10:22

My personal experience (may differ from others but this has happened): DS was at the NICU in Welcare for 5 days. Out of all the nurses I only found a small handful to be really competent (mainly the South African nurses and an Egyptian lady). Beware: it is VERY difficult to find the neonatalist anywhere (there are only 2 of them who always seem to be 'too busy' for you to meet) if you have questions you want answered by him directly, although you are still charged AED 750 a day for his visit. Also, unless you specifically ask for details of the baby's progress, what exactly they are doing to him/her and question why he/she is being kept and how much longer he/she will need to stay on, they will keep him/her as long as they can (meaning if the do not need his incubator). I never got real feedback from the nurses or the registrars, other than 'it is just a matter of time'. The following day after being discharged (after a c-section) I spent an entire morning and the better part of the afternoon trying to find the neonatalist to ask him what was the next course of action with the baby and when would he be discharged. Only after this he said in a as-a-matter-of-fact fashion: 'oh, he can leave today actually' (this was said to me at 3pm!). The nurses and registrars had told me the previous day that he would need 'a few more' days at the unit (!). I am sorry, but when I pay AED 3,000-5,000 a day, this is simply not good enough. Sad as it is, when I met with the Director of Medical Services to give him my feedback on the unit and the neonatalist, he made it very clear that he runs his department as a business.

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