Galway Bay fm newsroom - A survey of maternity hospitals has found almost half of respondents had a very good experience overall at the unit at UHG, while 56 percent of those surveyed reported a very good experience at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe.
University Hospital Galway and Portiuncula Hospital were two of the 19 participating hospitals nationwide.
The 2020 National Maternity Experience Survey asked new mothers about their recent experiences of Ireland’s maternity services from antenatal care, through labour and birth, to postnatal care.
In UHG, 49 percent of the 118 respondents reported a 'very good' experience, with 39 percent describing their experience as 'good' and 15 percent describing the care as 'fair to poor'.
The acute city hospital was rated 7.5 out of 10 for antenatal care and received a rating of 8.8 out of 10 for care during labour and birth.
It achieved a rating of 7 out of 10 for care in the hospital after birth with the lowest scoring area relating to debriefing and the opportunity to ask questions after the labour and birth.
In Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe, of the 106 respondents, 56 percent said their overall experience was 'very good', 32 percent described it as 'good' and 11 percent described it as 'fair to poor'.
The Ballinasloe facility scored 7.9 out of 10 for antenatal care and a score of 8.6 out of 10 for care during labour and birth.
Portiuncula maternity unit scored 8 out of 10 for care in hospital after birth and 8.9 out of 10 for specialised care.
In the area of feeding, UHG received a score of 7.7, while Portiunucula achieved a rating of 7.9 with many giving low ratings for the level of support and encouragement provided to women in the area of feeding their baby.
Over 6,300 eligible new mothers nationwide werecontacted by post in February and March 2020 as part of the study.
Ireland’s five maternity hospitals and 14 maternity units, as well as the National Home Birth Services participated.
