Having our baby at Swan Hill District Health

Kelsey and her husband, Greg, were aware COVID restrictions might restrict their time together when they came to Swan Hill District Health for the birth of their first child.

“It was nerve-wrecking, we weren’t sure what would happen, but we were lucky. The restrictions changed the week we came in, so Greg could come and go as he needed to,” Kelsey explains. She’d always thought she’d like a natural birth, but son Bodhi had different ideas. “He was breech and not flipping around, so two weeks beforehand it was decided I needed a caesarean”.

On the day, Kelsey arrived at the hospital about six in the morning and Bodhi was delivered a few hours later. The couple has nothing but praise for SHDH staff.

“Even for my appointments beforehand, Dr Nick was fantastic – he’s not there all the time, but my appointments seemed to coincide with his weeks in Swan Hill”.

“And the midwives were so helpful – they were so positive with me all the time, it was terrific,” Kelsey explained. When she was in the mid ward, preparing for Bodhi’s arrival, she said the nurses were incredibly calming.

“I had a bit of high blood pressure and a few other things, but they explained everything. Greg was allowed to stay in for Bodhi’s birth and he even got to cut the cord, which was really special,” she said.

“The nurses took pictures for us and did everything they could to make sure we were comfortable and happy all the time,” Kelsey told us. Since they left hospital, Kelsey says she’s been linked in
to various services as needed and everything is going well.

We are proud and pleased you had such a good experience, Kelsey, but is there anything we can do better?

“My husband was on a pull-out bed, which was a bit uncomfortable; and COVID meant the hospital physio was only able to do sessions on zoom, so I had to find another provider, but generally, it was a really good experience,” Kelsey said.

This story has been collected as part of the Swan Hill District Health Consumer Stories Project.
If you have a story to tell, or would like to share your experience, please contact the
Quality, Experience and Safety team on 03 5033 9894 or feedback@shdh.org.au