Motherhood Hospital – Hebbal: A Candid Review

Our pregnancy was a surprise for us, in the sense that even though we were trying for it, we did not think it would happen so quickly. So when we found out we were pregnant, we were absolutely not prepared for anything. It took us almost a month to even get our heads around the fact that we were going to have a baby. During that time, we did not think too much about anything. We went for a checkup to a hospital closest to our house and randomly selected a doctor there (and I mean randomly – they gave us the names of the gynecologists working there and we picked the first name).

Only when we completed our first trimester did it actually hit us – we were going to have a BABY and we need to start taking this a lot more seriously! Thus began our hunt for a hospital or a maternity clinic that best suited our needs. Over the course of the next six months, we ended up visiting three other hospitals and there was no end to our confusion!

We selected and settled for Motherhood Hospital – Hebbal during our eighth month of pregnancy. Talk about living on the edge!

By this time we knew exactly what we wanted and I knew I was going for a caesarian delivery, so it was easy for us to negotiate an excellent package with the hospital. The points that worked in favour of the hospital were:

• Excellent pricing – well within our budget
• Good hospital facilities
• My gynecologist was associated with them
• They included every possible amenities in their packages for both mother and child

Since I had a caesarian delivery, I stayed in the hospital for three days. And, let me tell you, I was blown away by the service I received from the hospital. BLOWN.AWAY.
I’ve never had a major surgery so I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but I was so happy with the attention I received from the attendants and nurses, that it made the whole ordeal much more bearable.

Pre-Op and Surgery

The beginning was a little bumpy. The nurses got my operation timing wrong and they thought they had less than ten minutes to prep me for the operation. I was suddenly surrounded by seven to eight nervous nurses, all poking and injecting me simultaneously and let me tell you, they did a pretty good job of scaring the poop out of me! By the time I was wheeled into the OT, I was a ready to let the baby stay inside me forever. Once inside the OT, everyone realized we still had time, so, I just sat on the operating bed waiting for the inevitable.

I loved the fact that while I was waiting for the operation to begin, the nurses and my anesthesiologist kept checking on me every few minutes and they were very reassuring. By the time the operation began, I had calmed down considerably.

I am not going to say that the operation bit was amazing, because come on – it was an operation – it’s never going to be amazing, but what came after the operation was excellent. The foremost reason why I will recommend Motherhood Hospital – Hebbal is for the amazing, and incredibly wonderful post-op care that both my baby and I received.
Here are the ways in which they made my post-op recovery smoother.

Post Surgery Care

• From the time I was shifted to my room, I had nurses come in to check on me every couple of hours. Even during the night. This inevitably helped me wake up to feed my baby on time.
  
  
• The nurses helped me with everything, and I mean everything. They changed my clothes, my maternity pads, cleaned me up, changed the baby’s diaper and clothes and ensured I got as much rest as possible.
  
  
• My baby wasn’t latching on very well initially and hence, her intake of my breast milk was very less. After the first day, it was decided, that she needed a bit of top-up of formula for the next couple of days. Again, the nurses would be in my room dot on time to feed her. I never had to actually call them to come and do it.
  
  
• The night shift nurses are also very prompt and alert and I never faced any issue of them being unavailable.
  
• In these three days, I had a lactation specialist and a nutritionist come in to teach me how to feed the baby properly and myself.
  
  
• Along with my gynecologist, I also had the on-duty gynecologist come in everyday, morning and evening, to check on me.
  
  
• They provided us with everything that we needed for both the baby and me. Night gowns, pads, diapers, wipes, maternity pants, everything was provided by them.
  
  
• One of the best services they offered me was when my baby required the blue light, because she had mild jaundice. Instead of taking my baby away from me and keeping her under the light in the NICU, they bought the bed with the light into my room, so I could keep an eye on her at all times. I cannot even begin to tell you what a relief this was.

I liked the fact that the nurses did everything oh-so-cheerfully. At no point, did any nurse make me feel uncomfortable. They genuinely seemed to love doing what they were doing and took such excellent care of my baby. They were gentle, soothing, and knowledgeable and empathized with me. They cracked jokes, told me I was doing an excellent job and taught me how to bond with my baby beautifully.

I did feel that the on-call doctors were a little brisk and aloof (both the gynecologists and the pediatricians) – probably because they’ve seen their share of nervous mothers and prefer not to entertain their fears. I would have liked it if they were a bit more engaging and not too dismissive but it wasn’t a deal-breaker.

The one thing I did not like about the hospital was the food. Yes, it was bland food, but I love bland food, so that wasn’t the problem. The food just did not taste good. By the time I left the hospital, I was so ready for some good home-cooked meal.

Barring the food, I did not have anything else to complain about. This was my first stay in the hospital for a longer duration and I am glad that turned out this well. So, to summarize, the pros and cons of Motherhood Hospital – Hebbal are:

Pros:

1. Excellent pricing (you will need to negotiate the pricing of course, but it isn’t too high to begin with, when you compare it to other big hospitals and nursing homes. Make sure you ask for an all-inclusive price that includes babies medications/first vaccine and mothers post op medicines. The only thing that should be variable cost is NICU charge if required)
2. Clean rooms and bathrooms
3. Hygienic practices
4. Friendly and very helpful nurses and attendants
5. Very transparent – they will tell you exactly what they doing, why they are doing, what medicines they are giving you and will allow you to accompany the baby whenever she/he is taken away for checkups.
6. Prompt service
7. The manager comes in everyday to get the patient’s feedback and actually take action on them.

Cons:

1. Food‘s not great. Could have been a bit more appetizing, especially since we don’t have much of an appetite in the days following the surgery.
2. The doctors could have been a bit more engaging.

Share with me your delivery story below and if you’ve availed the services of Motherhood Hospital – Hebbal as well, then let me know in the comments below if you agree with me.

Note: This is not a paid review and all opinions shared here are purely based on my experience with the hospital. Experiences may vary from person to person. This is a review for the Hebbal branch of the hospital only. For further information you can click the following link to access Motherhood’s site : CLICK HERE