News

Mum’s the word for Wollongong Private Hospital

Dec 12, 2015

While mums-to-be who are due in January are booking into dual facilities to prepare for the move from Figtree Private Hospital to Wollongong Private Hospital, one woman knows the maternity service is worth the effort.

Fiona Carolan has given birth to all 10 of her children at Figtree Private Hospital, the most recent, Ciaran, just three months ago.

“Whether you have one child or 10, every new life is a precious gift and, as parents, Martin and I wanted the best possible care at the birth of all of our children,” she said.

“At Figtree Private Hospital we could have the obstetrician of our choice and a great team of midwives to look after us. The preparation, delivery and follow-up from this team were always very caring and professional and made it all seem easy.

“Because of the dedicated team involved I am sure the same high level of care will continue in the bigger and better surroundings of the new Wollongong Private Hospital.

"It would be great to hear about the first mother to have 10 children in the new Wollongong Private Hospital. I'd also love to visit the new Wollongong Private Hospital delivery suite... but only for a tour."

Fiona gave birth to her first child Felicity in January 1999, not long after the birthing suite opened at Figtree in 1998. Felicity is now 16 and has been joined by Isabelle, 14, Cormac, 13, Thomas, 11, Patrick, 9, Celeste, 8, Benedict, 6, Daniel 4, Louis, 2, and Ciaran, 3 months.

Large families are familiar territory to Fiona and her husband with Fiona being the eldest of 11 children and Martin the eldest of eight.

Wollongong Private Hospital CEO David Crowe says women who are due to give birth in mid January are booking into both Figtree and Wollongong Private Hospitals to ensure they are catered for during the transfer between facilities in January.

“Because babies don’t always run to a fixed schedule, mothers whose due dates are around mid January are ensuring they are being accommodated at both facilities in preparation for the transfer period,” he said.

“That just means that they are fully briefed about where to go and what to expect at that time. It’s an emotional time for parents and we intend to make sure there is minimal impact from the changeover in facilities.”

The Wollongong Private Hospital opens on January 18.