Posted by
mumof2boys
13 yrs ago
Hi all,
I'm super confused why the Public Maternity system is refusing to give me even ONE ultrasound, when every other person I know here who has used them has had one. they keep telling me to just go private and no explanation is given of why I am being refused the free service offered to everyone else. I really don't have a spare $800 to spend on a private scan and am just wondering how I go about fighting this and who I should even approach to get more information as the staff at the Prince of Wales hospital, where I am registered, refused to answer any questions! please help if you have heard of this happening before!
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Pocky
13 yrs ago
hey ... govt hospitals does provide scan once .. but i think that is done around 22-24 weeks. Maybe you are still at your 20week mark so they are refusing you. Check with them. You should have been given an appt for the scan by now.
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No I have checked and they say I will not receive an ultrasound.......I double checked both at the hospital and the health clinic. My sister had 4 very complicated pregnancies so I am becoming more and more nervous about things like placenta praevia. I am also Rhesus negative which complicates things as they will not store my blood type at the hospital, so if I were to have placenta preavia or some condition that meant I could bleed to death, they would give me a blood transfusion of rhesus positive blood....this would render me infertile and every time I got pregnant the baby would die in utero in the future unless I had a a rhesus negative baby......ugggg it's stressing me out, and I want to file a real complaint but where do you even go here to do that???
Iwilltry - what hospital are you signed up with?? I'm with Prince of Wales.
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Hi Muof2boys,
I also went to Prince of Wales hospital at 8 weeks wanting to book a 12 week scan. The only scan appt they would give me was at my 22 week mark. I stood there and complained at the counter and I got no where. It was sooooo frustrating. So I had NO option but to go get a 12week scan privately.
I also seen have been back to get another scan and try to restore my faith in POW as its the closest to Sai Kung. I got one appt slip for Dec the 11th. This is 2/3 weeks from my due date.
Agai n frustrated that I HAVE to go private for all my pregnancy check-ups. I will deliver at POW because I can not afford private delivery.
Its annoying to hear this is happening to others as I thought maybe it was just me!
Let me know how you get on and if there's somewhere you can lodge a formal complaint to I will as well.
Cheers
Kate
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Just found out that it is my age I guess.......I'm 32 so "low risk" whatever the hell that means!
Bigwhale thanks for your PM, I found it stated on the website that they do not offer scans for low risk candidates so I guess they have covered their asses by having it on the website...
I am frustrated I have to go private, but at least, as my friends point out, it will be a less stressful experience and I'll enjoy just seeing bubba once. Thanks for the support guys! This is a stressful thing to do away from home as it is and I was under the impression HK had a world class public maternal healthcare......now I know it's just for mums who are over 35 and have perceived high risk cases. Damn being young and healthy!! ( hahaha trying to make light of bad situation)
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I'm over age 35, am giving birth at POW and would hardly say I'm having a less stressful experience. However, I did get one scan at week 25 - but that's it. I haven't been able to go back there since - all I've had are the appointments at the MCH in Ma On Shan where they check my pee/weight/blood pressure, measure my belly, listen to the baby's heartbeat and send me on my way. I'm due in a few weeks and I am absolutely amazed that I have had no real physical checkups my entire pregnancy!!!! I'm also actually kind of dreading my labor because the midwives have told me not to expect my husband to be present or that any of my wishes on my birth plan will be followed because they have 'their way' of doing things and can't be bothered to listen to individual requests. Seriously - I ask about this every time I go to the MCH and they say the same thing. I will never give birth in the public system again.
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After reading all of these postings I actually feel somewhat pleased to have a high risk pregnancy. I'm also 32 and I'm going to the Queen Mary Hospital and due at the end of October. The care I've received has been fantastic I've had 8 scans so far since the first one at 13 weeks. I should probably thank my baby B as she keeps them all guessing however she is doing fine at this stage which I'm very thankful for. I actually thought that a 13 week scan with blood tests for chromosomes 13,18 and 21 was standard along with a 20 week structural scan.
Good luck to all.
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I had placenta previa and I went through the public system - Prince of Wales. Let me tell you that if you have this condition and you bleed, they will give you lots of scans. They won't call it a previa until the 28th week of pregnancy because up until this time, the placenta has a chance of moving up and away. Once you are confirmed to have it, scanning usually only helps to determine whether it moves away or not. By 28th week, chances are slim. So they go by your "bleeding" episodes. You will find out when you have a scan at around 22-25 weeks if your placenta is low lying. If it is, they'll schedule you for another scan after the 28th week to see if it's still low lying. If it is, they will schedule a c-section for you. If it isn't low lying, they will treat you as normal.
The problem with repeated scanning is that it is expensive and some say that it is unhealthy....
When the hospital deems that you need scanning, it means the benefits outweigh the risks.
If you don't have too many scanning, it means you are healthy and everything's progressing normally. This is a good sign.
You can pay for an oscar scan at the 12th week (test for down syndrome) at the public hospital. It does cost $800, I believe.
Otherwise, you do have to go to a private hospital to get more scans.
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I am around 15 weeks pregnant and registered at Tseung Kwan O. I was surprised to be a offered a free scan for Down's Syndrome screening. I was also pregnant last year (!) and was told that the scan was free only for women over 35 (I am not over 35). Apparently, the policy has changed this year. So this year it's free Down's Screening, no free structural scan at 20ish weeks, unless deemed necessary by doctors.
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I'm around 11Weeks, 27 years old, they offer a free scan for Down's Syndrome screening at Tsang Yuk Hospital, they told me the scan for Down's syndrome can only be done in between 11w-13w, after that they will only give you a blood test for Down's.
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I was just given a date for a scan/ blood test for Down's syndrome for Princess Margaret's today after going to the MCHC. I will be around 11 weeks. I tried to use the public system two years ago and got nothing. I asked the nurses today if I would really get the scan and they said the law changed and it is now offered to all pregnant women as long as it is before 13 weeks. I am 33 and 'low-risk'.
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Hi! I also just had my Downs Syndrome screening done at Princess Margaret and was so happy to get an ultra sound done (@ 12wees) as I thought that I would need to get that done privately! So that saved me a few $$$. My next appointment is on the 25th and I guess this is where I'll just be getting the basics done. And from the above posts I think I will have to be getting the rest of my scans done privately (though I was expecting this) as I don't think I'll be classed high risk as I'm only 31.
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Maybe it's the hospital you go to. POW is pretty busy, they did tell me at MCHC that they would 'try' to get me a date for a scan for Downs Syndrome at Princess Margaret and an hour later, I had a time and date set up for me. My sister-on-law is going POW and is only getting free scans as she is high risk, I think my brother said they weren't offering to 'low-risk' people as they were overbooked.
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