This is the hospital where Ava is slowly recovering. We have been given a VIP en suite single room, as we knew a friend of the top maternity doctor, which has made a real difference. The hospital covers a wide countryside population and the stares and whispers I get as I walk around would have been annoying in a larger shared ward after a while. Ava is getting a lot of visitors too!
Our wing of the hospital is just a few months old, and surprisingly bare and clean. There are plenty of Health and Safety hiccups remaining though, such as bare wires, broken lifts and this great fire escape door opposite our room. The top sign declares "No locking", while the green one insists it's an emergency fire escape. The padlock below tells a different story though!
The nurses and the doctors we've seen have been excellent (well, perhaps barring one who was a bit brusque and managed to insert a drip into Ava's skin rather than a vein. An hour later as her hand began to swell, another nurse came to the rescue and reinserted the needle!). In some ways, the NHS could learn something here: The cleaners come in 3-4 times a day to clean everywhere and the nurses pop in every half an hour, and are always quick to respond when called. Ava managed a few minutes sitting and a slow, painful walk to the toilet for the first time last night. As the various machines, drains and drips gradually disappear, we're enjoying the baby routines more.
Ma-in-law gets a go
