My wife had a cesarean section at Suji Mirae Obstetrics and Gynecology. We chose this facility after considering various maternity clinics that offered both childbirth and postnatal care. At the time of consultation, our experiences were mainly about ultrasound feedback, so it was hard to judge the quality. My wife did mention the doctor was kind and professional (I'm not certain). In this report, I want to detail the key events and share some aspects that were a bit disappointing.
Day 1 - Day of the C-Section:
- 06:00 - Woke up and did final preparations for surgery.
- 07:30 - Arrived at the hospital, checked into the ward, and had a medical round.
- 08:50 - My wife went into the operating room, I waited outside.
- 09:34 - Our baby was born; I saw him 10 minutes later.
- 10:24 - After the stitching was done, she waited in a temporary room.
- 11:20 - Moved to the actual ward room.
- 23:00 - Saw my wife get an anesthetic injection with an IV.
We were advised to arrive at the hospital about 1.5-2 hours earlier than the scheduled 9:00 surgery. After some procedures and paperwork, my wife went in for surgery.
To my shock, I later learned that the anesthetist was having a casual conversation about a thorn in his finger while administering the anesthesia. Such unprofessionalism is unacceptable.
Though the surgery was successful, there was an unexpected wait, and we were given a different room than we had seen earlier.
Day 2 - Meeting our baby:
- 06:00 - Urine catheter removed.
- 09:00 - Informed the nurse after her first urination.
- Wife's meals
- Meeting our baby
- Air pressure massage
- 19:00 - Administered antibiotics and painkillers; IV removed.
- 20:00 - Given uterine contraction medicine.
Compared to Day 1, a highlight was my wife's first meal after surgery. She managed to see our baby at 10:00 after consistent leg exercises, which seemed to aid her recovery.
Day 3 - Removal of painkiller injection:
- 07:00 - Painkiller injection removed.
- 09:00 - Dressing of the C-section wound and removal of the painkiller patch.
- Birth registration
- Intensifying post-surgery pain
- Ongoing construction
- 20:00 - Administered painkiller and antibiotic injections.
The pain became more challenging for my wife since she had to rely solely on painkillers. Despite this, there was construction noise, and even within her room, they added markings for construction. This was extremely inconvenient.
While I understand that the construction workers are just doing their job, the hospital should have scheduled the work better to ensure the comfort of their patients.
Day 4 - First Attempt at Breastfeeding:
- 08:00 - Administered antibiotics and painkillers (via buttock injection)
- 09:00 - Checked C-section wound with ultrasound and redressed
- 11:00 - Attempted breastfeeding
- Studied breast massage techniques on YouTube
- Tried pumping with a portable breast pump
- Temporarily moved to a different hospital room due to tile work
- 15:00 - Administered painkillers (via buttock injection)
- 20:00 - Blood pressure check and antibiotics administered (via buttock injection)
- 22:00 - Checked discharge plans for the next day
- 23:00 - Administered painkillers (via buttock injection)
Despite some pain from the surgery site on the fourth day, my wife had no significant difficulties moving around as she consistently received painkillers approximately every 8 hours. It was a significant day as she tried breastfeeding for the first time. However, our baby became frustrated when the milk did not flow easily.
Upon hearing this, I proactively learned breast massage techniques from various YouTube videos to help. My wife also tried self-massage and pumping with the portable breast pump. Unfortunately, due to the baby's jaundice, the baby couldn't breastfeed until after the phototherapy treatment.
Additionally, there were renovations in the maternity ward. Tiles near our room were being replaced, causing us to temporarily move to another room from around 10:00 in the morning to 4:00 in the afternoon. Although there were two doors between our temporary room and the construction site, the noise and vibrations were still noticeable.
Day 5 - Discharge:
- 08:00 - Administered antibiotics and painkillers (via buttock injection)
- 09:00 - Stitches removed and wound redressed
- 10:00 - Completed hospital payment procedures and got discharged
- 11:00 - Our baby was discharged from the neonatal ward
Today marks the fifth day after the C-section and our baby's fifth day of life. We settled the hospital bill, which came up to approximately 1.17 million won. Although we were initially told the typical stay after a C-section would be 5 nights and 6 days, we only stayed for 4 nights and 5 days. The highlight of the day was finally getting to hold our baby for an extended period.
Although I'll have more opportunities to hold the baby in the future, this was the first time post-delivery that I held the baby for more than 10 minutes. It felt incredibly special and heartwarming.
Areas for Improvement at the Maternity Hospital:
One consistent issue was the timing of the first morning check-up. Breakfast was served between 7:50 and 8:00, but medical staff would come in for check-ups just 10 minutes after, sometimes with 3-4 people at once. It was uncomfortable to be interrupted during meals, and both my wife and I found it disruptive. We've given feedback on this, hoping future patients have a better experience.
Summary as of April 9th, 2023.