Am I too late to register at Latifa Hospital? HELP!

Sorry, I really did write a book!

I developed a massive DVT at 29 weeks and was admitted for just over a week. At the same time, it was discovered that my DD had an etopic heartbeat. They were also concerned as my bump was very small. For the remainder of my pregnancy, I was having fortnightly scans at the Foetal Maternal Monitoring Unit to monitor the baby (as well as my fortnightly/then weekly antenatal appointments). I was induced at 37 weeks as she had not grown since the previous scan, and to top it off, I also had pre-eclampsia. I was admitted that afternoon and was not allowed to leave to go home and get my bag (and DH was away at the time and I stupidly had not put my hospital bag in the car! There was talk of inducing, but thought it would be a few days away!) As I was taking blood thinning injections (and took one only a couple of hours before the scan), they had to wait till the next morning to start the induction incase there was any complications. However, all went well! DD's heartbeat had corrected itself before that last scan but had an ECG done on her second day before we were discharged to make sure everything was okay. It did show some stress to the heart, so we were kept in for another night to be monitored and a repeat ECG. It was a good thing however, as by that stage she did need light therapy treatment for her jaundice. The day after we were discharged, we had to return to get her jaunice levels checked and they had gone up so we were then admitted overnight for more treatment. Once discharged again, we had to go back several times the next week to make sure that they were decreasing. The aftercare you receive from the Lactation Consultants are amazing and I have never heard of such good care/help with breastfeeding anywhere before. The overall cost of the first week in hospital was very small. It was around Dhs2,500 for 8 days/nights (in a shared room - I didn't mind and when I private became available, I was too comfortable where I was and the company was actually quite nice! The majority of the time, I was either the only one in the room or there was only one other patient. Being stuck in a bed unable to move was bad enough and I had to call a nurse to take me to the bathroom (which was only about 4 metres away) as they would not allow me to walk for the first 4 days or leave my room (being pushed in a wheelchair). My DH almost had a heartattack when the nurse told him to only take me near the emergency dept in case part of the clot had broken away and went to my lungs or if I did go into preterm labour!! When I delivered, we requested a private room and on the second day one did became available, but again I was quite happy to stay in the shared room. To me, it was just like the public hospital in NZ (where I would have been if I had delivered there - it was the plan, as I was due to fly out to NZ on my 30th week!) I also paid the Dhs5,000 antenatal costs, Dhs7,000 for delivery and think it was under a Dhs1,000 for two ECGs, a night stay in the paediatric ward with the phototherapy treatment. They cover all medications needed while in the hospital which was good as the clexane injections cost almost Dhs100 a day! I also had a couple of postpartum appointments - one was free and the other was Dhs250. Blood tests cost extra depending of the tests (but not very much) and specialist appointments are Dhs250. If I had gone privately when I was first admitted with the DVT, we worked out that it would have been well over Dhs10,000. And as I lost my insurance through my company when I declared my pregnancy (but did get the health card), I was glad that we went to Al Wasl (Latifa)! Because of the care I received during that week, I was very happy to continue and have the delivery there. I know that its 'no frills/not fancy' isn't for everyone, nor having to see a different dr at each appointment suits some, but for me it worked and it was quite a good thing to get a different approach/take on a situation. You are assigned a head consultant and their team of drs. They all knew my case in detail and I felt that I didn't have to explain my situation at all at each visit. The head consultant had the final say in almost every aspect of my care and I could not fault her. While I was in labour, she did come and check up on me to see how things were progessing. The only thing that if I would complain about it, but to me I wasn't that bothered by it, was that labour suite. DH could not come in while I was in labour as it's a shared room, but I spent the early stage of labour out with him and only went in to the labour suite for the CTG's and when it all got too much. I was lucky to have a very good girlfriend who was in there with me. And for the actual delivery, you are moved to the delivery suite where DH can be with you for the birth! You may have to wait a while at your appointments but I discovered it was best to book as early as possible in the morning, even trying to get the first appointment of the day. Some days, I even saw the dr earlier than my booked appointment time. Sorry, I have realised that I've written a book here! But I had a very good experience in Latifa and I will be back there again for the next one (if we are still in Dubai of course!) and even though our insurance covers (yes, I have private insurance now!) private hospitals, it would be my first choice.

Last year when I delivered there, you had to register before the end of your 28th week. I'm not sure whether this is still the case but call them (before 2.30pm if calling the hospital) to check. I was 29 weeks when I was admitted in an emergency, and the Dr who admitted me was unsure whether they would (rather, have the space for me) as I had not registered. I continued to have all my care and delivery there (as both my baby and myself) were high-risk and I can highly recommend it. If I have another baby while in Dubai, I will definitely go back (for the level of care and previous history!) Congrats by the way on your pregnancy and hope it all goes well!

Hi I registered at around 20 weeks so I don't think you're too late. Only way to find out is to go there (or to your local clinic e.g. Al Badaa) and ask.