Moving from USA to Qatar with pregnant wife
Hello all.
I have just accepted a job in Doha and will be moving from the USA to Qatar in November. My wife and I have never been to Qatar and she will be 6 months pregnant when we arrive. We are both very excited about our move (and have been reading the forums at length), but we wanted to know what advice you all have for us concerning the pregnancy, good hospitals/doctors, things we should be aware of or things we should make sure we bring, etc...
Many thanks. Any info at all would be most appreciated.
Bilroth,
I just moved here 3 weeks ago from Texas. Rather than post a long thing to this forum just email me at [email protected] and I will give the long and short of things. As far as the baby goes I would just read the posts as I do have any adivce to give. I do work for Hamad Medical Corporation, but in EMS not the hospital. Again any other questions you have please feel free. I used this forum and now have some really great friends here. And don't worry you can find almost everything here we have in the states if you look hard enough.
Tex
"life is short, live it"
and was happy with their service.they took good care of me and my baby.
Hello....I read your delivery experience in Hamad. I am also an expectant mom..I am also planning to have my baby in Hamad. I had my first delivery in India and it was c-section. My due date is on the 28th of Aug. So now I will under go for normal delivery procedure. I just want to know what are the things that we should take to hospital. In India we can choose our own things according to our convinient. So could you please help me on this...Thank you for your time....
I wouldn't have my baby in Hamed. I have heard lots of scary things about it. One of my friends was slapped by the nurse for making too much noise and another was given a laxative without her knowledge which was very difficult for her while in labour at the time and being in the bathroom because of the laxative.
Female companions are not allowed in either. The people who say they were allowed in must be lucky. All my friends have never been allowed anyone female or otherwise into the delivery room, during labour or delivery.
I always go back to the UK for my children's births but if I was to have one here I would go to Al Ahli Hospital or Al Emadi which are private but my husband would be allowed in even though the cost is about 6000 riyals. anyone who has been to these private hospitals has had a good experience.
Saying this, Hamed Pediatric department is excellent otherwise. I just dont understand the rules they have for labour and delivery
`Fraggle
get all the baby stuff from home, you dont have a wide variety to choose from over here.
u seemed to be quite concerend and its alright to be, but rest assured, the women's hospital here is very good, they take a good deal of care of the patients.
depending on who is on duty, the physician carying out the delivery could be male or female, but let me tell you most of the deliveries are carried out by trained nurses also called midwives, the doctors are informed and called in for further procedure like carrying out the episiotomy.
no one is allowed in the labour room, except a female companion, but she is also asked to leave when the delivery is taking place.
it could take upto 3-6hours bfore you can see your baby, as the lady will be taken to a recovery room and only then shifted to the ward.
sorry men are not allowed.father will get to the see the baby only in the ward.
they stress a lot on breastfeding and will resort to bottle feeding only if you are unable to feed the baby or other reasons they know better of. it is not necessary that the hospital staff will bottle feed your baby from the start. if there is a suspicion of jaundice, then they advise you to breast feed more often, and if thats not possible then they suggest bottle feed.
pain relief is also given according to the time that it is suitable to be given, but you can ask for the physician to administer it. pethidine is a common practice, not sure about epidural, except for a Csection.
you can opt for evening clinic in womens hospital where u pay a little more but you can choose your doctor, the doctors in the evening clinics are all consultants, so at the time of delivery you can request for your consultant if he/she is on duty, otherwise also their team of doctors are very well capable to handle all that comes their way
take care
We were considering going private, but a doctor friend persuaded us to go to Hamad - he said that's where he would go if it was his wife. They have the best equipment, and we had excellent service, although my wife she didn't feel as informed as in the U.K. I believe you have to tell the doctor what painkillers you want in advance.
It was hard not being present at the birth. I think it was two or three hours before I could see my wife and baby. I brought my mother-in-law over to accompany my wife. I don't think even women are supposed to stay thoughout the birth, but perhaps because of our friend in Hamad she was allowed to.
Good luck!
Sorry about taking so long to answer my baby has been keeping me busy these days. In Hammed Hospital the father is Not allowed in the delivery room, How never Doha Clinic lets the father in. The Dr that deliver my baby was male and the anesthesiologist to, the Dr that check by baby as soon as she was born was also male. I am sure I saw more men inside. I got a C- section and an epidural actually was more afraid of this than anything but it work wonders for me.
Hey Bilroth. My wife and I recently moved to Doha from US. The Reponses you got are correct in stating that the state medical facilities (Hamad Hospital) are excellent. However we've found that it is sometimes difficult to get an appointment. Hamad Hospital is essentially available to everyone in Doha and it is heavily subsidized by the government so you can imagine how high the demand for services is. If your employer is a US firm you may want to check if they offer international healthcare coverage. This will allow you to seek care in the private sector and then get reimbursed for your expenses. The most commonly accepted insurance carriers in Doha are Cigna and Bupa International. I’m sure there are others. Hope this helps.
A couple more questions: are the fathers ever allowed in the delivery room? are there male physicians present? what about epidurals, are they a common practice? thanks for all the info so far-- it has been very helpful
I have a 10 month old baby I had my baby in Hamed's Hospital witch is the public hospital. The doctors are excellent I had never even considered public health in my country so I was a bit scare but Drs were so professional and I was treated excellent. I chouse this hospital because they have the best equipment and in general have the best health care when it comes to births. In general I had a good experience. You have to consider that:
-To have a consultation there takes time so I went to a private Dr all my pregnancy and the two months I went back to see the Dr in the hospital
-Husband is not allowed in the delivery room
-Baby will be bottle feed the first day. After that you can ask for breastfeeding only. (It worked for me and I am still breastfeeding)
-You might want o consider a private room their private rooms are Amazing
As far as bringing with you I will suggest to get your nursery before you come here. There are not many stores to chouse from, and items are not so pretty. We have Mothercare, Chicco, Baby Shop, Premamom and a small section of Babys r us in Toys R Us. You can find almost everything here.
There are also play groups and a bunch of stay home moms that love to met new moms. The parks for the kids are clean and VERY safe. I generally like it. I think is a good place to raise kids.
Ours were born c-section but she did breastfeed the first.
The good thing at the hospital here is that newborn and mother are kept together in mother's room after birth, no nursery, unless there are medical issues that require the separation.
I gave birth in the public hospital here (women's hospital). Care and facilities are excellent and overall it was a good experience. The only bad thing: my husband was not allowed to be by my side during the birth of our daughter.
If your wife is planning to breastfeed, she must be aware about the hospital care when the baby is born! They bottle-feeded mine the day she was born, without asking my permission, few times, because I was too weak after the cesarean... and never managed to stablish breasfeeding afterwards.
As E46 mentioned, I had the "what to expect during the first year" book and it really helped me, especially when you have no family or support around and it is your first baby.
... on the baby and the upcoming move. Medical care at the pricate hospitals/clinics here is straightforward. You can get plenty of recommendations for doctors.
If your wife still has cravings for certain foods list them here and we'll let you know if they are(n't) available. You will need to bring your books (the What to Expect series is great).
Let us know if you have specific questions.
Our kids were born here and received excellent care. One of them ended up in the pediatric ICU for the first few days and I have nothing but compliments for the staff and facilities at the Women's and Maternity Hospital.
Double Post
I would have your HR Department sort you out (esp. arranging for your wife a doctor/appropriate medical centre) ... that's what they're there for!!
Best of luck!
MC