Do we HAVE to take our baby to be weighed at the HV?

gingin_2

I'm really saddened to read this. My Mum was a nurse and then a health visitor, started 40 years ago and couldn't be more supportive and "modern" in her "professional" advice and grandparenting.

I've always fretted and perhaps over-reacted over various things and she has always been the voice of sanity. DD is a scrawny thing, always in the bottom of the percentile range thingy and Mum always says if she eats right, sleeps right and is active, then no worry.

Ds was my first, she stayed with me for 2 weeks after a difficult birth and I really didn't have a clue about babies and everything that goes with them and I was so lucky to have her there. She cooked, cleaned and looked after Ds whilst I caught up on rest but stayed in the background for the most part. Never once did she force an opinion, she let me do it my way and offered suggestions if I asked.

I know she was a Health Visitor in a very poor rural area and never once has she ever spoken disrespectfully of the families she visited, despite having many interesting stories to tell.

nickyhutch

Imagine if your HV had said "Oh I don't need to see your baby again - don;t bother bringing him/her in to be weighed; I'm sure he/she will be fine". I'm sure there'd be uproar - "I pat my taxes, I have as much right as a needy/vulnerable/poor family to HV access".

HVs do much much more than weigh babies - they're more like social workeres these days, with heavy child protection caseloads. Be grateful they're still able to make time for routine work, and hope that your baby isn't the 1 in a 100 where they spot a problem.

ETanny

If your contented that your baby is growing at a normal pace and are not worried there is no reason to take him. There is even less reason to take them if they are under care at the hospital and gets weighed etc there.

andrealm

nickyhutch wrote: »

Imagine if your HV had said "Oh I don't need to see your baby again - don;t bother bringing him/her in to be weighed; I'm sure he/she will be fine". I'm sure there'd be uproar - "I pat my taxes, I have as much right as a needy/vulnerable/poor family to HV access".

HVs do much much more than weigh babies - they're more like social workeres these days, with heavy child protection caseloads. Be grateful they're still able to make time for routine work, and hope that your baby isn't the 1 in a 100 where they spot a problem.

How often do HVs spot a problem in a baby who is clearly thriving and putting on weight just be weighing them? Everyone should have easy access to a clinic if they do have any concerns but you are not obliged to go and the HV shouldn't be insisting that all first babies MUST be weighed monthly, I certainly wasn't told that this was needed. If there was any good reason why the OP's baby really needed to be weighed monthly, I'm sure the doctor she sees at the hospital would have told her about it.

As far as being the 1 in 100 where they spot a problem goes, I'd be far more concerned about the fact that some areas have scrapped routine checks at 8 months and 2 years, which could mean things like autism aren't picked up on at an early age.

shellsuit

nickyhutch wrote: »

Imagine if your HV had said "Oh I don't need to see your baby again - don;t bother bringing him/her in to be weighed; I'm sure he/she will be fine". I'm sure there'd be uproar - "I pat my taxes, I have as much right as a needy/vulnerable/poor family to HV access".

HVs do much much more than weigh babies - they're more like social workeres these days, with heavy child protection caseloads. Be grateful they're still able to make time for routine work, and hope that your baby isn't the 1 in a 100 where they spot a problem.

Why would there be an uproar? If a health visitor had said that, then the parent need only ask if they can bring baby in if they wanted to and of course the HV would have to say Yes.

This HV has told the OP she MUST bring her child, but hasn't give any reasons as to why she must, so it's complete twaddle.

thatgirlsam

jaibaby wrote: »

I think you'll find that "poster" was me! And I won't. As I said, in my experience, the health professionals I have come into contact with have known nothing about actually experiencing children. Qualifications mean nothing to me I'm afraid. Again, I will say that I would go to my mum / nan / another mum before asking a HV with no kids. I don't agree with them. Telling me I can't wean my child before 6 months, even though he drunk 2 x 9oz bottles of hungry baby milk and still cries for more. I had a few days of no sleep, started him on food and he went straight back into his 12 hour sleeps at night.

Do you agree with a HV saying that we can't wean our children until they are 6 months, maybe longer, just because a textbook states it??? My mum weaned me and my four siblings early, never did us any harm!!!

My midwife, and now a very close friend, told me to do whatever feels best. After all, they do says it's a mothers instinct.

And this is not my high horse darling. And I certainly didn't come here to get involved in petty squabbles. I came on here to offer my personal view to the OP and the s**t I have put up with from my HV.

OP: if you are worried about your childs weight, put a plastic baby bath onto a set of scales (make sure its safe obv), set it to 0 then place your baby into it. Have a look in your childs record book and see if they are around the line it states. But, honestly, if they are feeding well and contented, don't worry!!

i can understand your point about asking relatives with child rearing experience for help.. but to say that qualifications mean nothing to you is ridiculous!

you previously said that you think the ONLY qualification needed is experience with children..

if all HV only had experience of their own children don't you think their experience would be rather limited?

they have studied for years to get their qualification but you would readily dismiss their opinion and rely, say on the neighbour next door who has 2 children

don't get me wrong.. years of experience bringing up children counts for a lot but if you or anyone else reading this has any concerns about their child please seek a professionals opinion!

i think what you have said on this thread is very very irresponsible

and no-where have i said you are not entitled to your opinion

however i can have my own opinion about what you have said.

thatgirlsam

nickyhutch wrote: »

And? Your children might be lucky enough not to need plotting up to age 18 - remember that those charts are used for ill/abused/neglected children too, to check their growth.

thank you for pointing that out as the thought hadn't crossed my mind but i can see where you are coming from

what amused me at the time was the thought of dragging my moody hulking teenager to baby clinic

obviously it wouldn't be amusing if a teenager had to be weighed and measured through abuse or neglect

i meant no harm by what i said

narabanekeater

Would anyone please happen to know what rules say about HV home visits after youve been discharged from your midwifes care which is at 10 days where I live
I was told at college the rules say 2 home visits from HV then your on your own
Im pregnant and am genuinally intrested is my HV has to visit us at home. I know clinic attendance is encouraged but im wondering about the HV coming to your home
Thanks

MegS

Another one with bad experiences of HVs. DS was a big baby weightwise and lengthwise and had his own centile above the chart - lots of tutting about how much he weighed and me advising they measured him too. I wanted to stop breastfeeding at six months as he was feeding all the time to be told 'don't be so silly' and no advice about weaning or cutting down the breastfeeding. I was told I was a bad mother because I wouldn't take him to have his ears tested - I knew there was nothing wrong with his hearing and was proved right when I eventually relented. I was told I was a bad mother because I wouldn't take him to speech therapy at 18 months as he wasn't talking much. Pointed out he was way ahead on his activity and motor neurone stuff and he would eventually talk as was proved right six months later and he hasn't shut up since lol. And her exact words were that I was a bad mother. I eventually wrote a letter of complaint and the head honcho of the health visitors came out to do his 2 year check and she was great and couldn't apologise enough about the three HVs I had had previous. Luckily I'm quite a survivalist sort of person and didn't let it get me down or doubt my abilities as a mother even though he was my first (and only!) and I had no-one familywise to ask advice from. He's survived to 11 so far so I can't be doing too badly lol.

SusanC_2

narabanekeater wrote: »

Would anyone please happen to know what rules say about HV home visits after youve been discharged from your midwifes care which is at 10 days where I live
I was told at college the rules say 2 home visits from HV then your on your own
Im pregnant and am genuinally intrested is my HV has to visit us at home. I know clinic attendance is encouraged but im wondering about the HV coming to your home
Thanks

Do you mean do you have to accept the visits or will you be offered them? I would hope that they are offered everywhere but your midwife should be able to tell you whether it is the case in your area. If for whatever reason you are not wanting to accept the visits in your home, I would strongly recommend you attend a clinic in the first couple of weeks.