"Wonderful staff at the Special Care Unit, Ipswich Hospital"

After noticing a gradual decline in the force and frequency of my unborn baby's movements, I went to Ipswich Hospital to check that everything was okay, and after running many tests over the course of several hours, I was rushed into surgery for the delivery of our baby.

Despite my fear and worry before and during surgery, the doctors, nurses and other medical staff who oversaw the delivery, were diligent and decisive without sacrificing their sensitivity to my anxiety. I felt confident and informed of what was happening and kept in the loop by the doctors, even after I left the theatre.

For many days, our baby stayed in the Special Care Nursery (SCN) under the tender care of many midwives, nurses and doctors - a team of marvellous and skilled individuals who I cannot praise highly enough.

Dr Courtney was among the doctors who worked closely with our baby during time in the SCN. She went to great lengths to make sure we were kept in the loop on all the medical needs of our baby as they came to light, and made us feel comfortable asking questions about the progress. We were at all times confident that our baby was getting the care needed from Dr Courtney and the many other doctors who worked alongside her.

Heather was a midwife and a team leader for many shifts while we were with our baby. Heather spoke to us as though we were old friends, which made our baby’s long stay in hospital far easier for us than it might have otherwise been. Her colleagues - Di, Elissa, Miranda, Louise, Amanda, Olga, Stacey, Kate, to name a few - were always positive and welcoming, which projected on to us, too, and our baby thrived.

The follow-up care for our baby has retained the same level of warmth and expertise that we have become familiar with while in the SCN. We cannot speak highly enough of the outstanding work this team of people did for our baby, who came home several weeks earlier than anticipated, thanks to the close care and attention given in the SCN at Ipswich Hospital.