Expensive Antenatal Package

[Avi]

hi slee,
who is dr ho? can you give me his/her full name?

hi jomom,
your paediatrician fee of 15k seems quite high. was that refered by milton leung or hospital? would it have been possible to choose your own?
As for the pricing package, i did receive two different prices for dr doo depending on which room i choose. but maybe dr leung just has a fixed price as he is already more expensive than the others.

 

[iwidiani]

Hi Avi,
The pediatrician was referred by Dr Leung. The staff at his clinic did ask me if I had one in mind. As I was new to HK, I did not know anyone.
Up to now, I still wonder if the pediatrician's charge should have been cheaper since he was not present during the birth.

As for the anaesthetist, I was also asked by Dr Leung & the hospital and at the end the hospital recommended one. He was a good one. My husband and him did chat in the operating theater

 

[Slee]

Dr. Philip Ho. There is a review of him on the geobaby homepage along with his contact details. He has delivered 6 babies of four friends now and as I said before they all found him great - very unusual for a group of women to be in concensus! Another great thing about him is that her will deliver at Adventist and Canossa which are a lot cheaper than Matilda and aren't known for adding hidden costs to your final bill.

 

[rani]

Another great thing about him is that he will deliver at Adventist and Canossa which are a lot cheaper than Matilda and aren't known for adding hidden costs to your final bill.

Slee the hospitals are in the business of making money. So yes, they will charge you for everything that is not included in their maternity package.

 

[keri]

I didn't have insurance either. I cut down on the costs by visiting my dr (Sally Fergusson) for the first few monthly appointments. Then when I needed more regular check-ups I registered with a public hospital, which is completely free apart from $60 if you need any tests or scans done. I went back to Sally occasionally, just because I found seeing a Western dr quite reassuring as she would explain things differently to me. However, on the whole I was very impressed with the public health system.
I got a antental classes, doula and post-natal package from annerly midwives for about $12,000 and I ended up giving birth at Queen Mary's, which cost just $260.
Was ever so impressed with the public hospital. I arrived almost fully dilated and my boyfriend stayed with me throughout the birth. They let him cut the cord and took pictures of us, then left us alone with the baby for half an hour. The wards were bright and clean and I got a reasonable amount of rest. If I had another baby in Hong Kong I'd do the same again.
Kerys x

 

[Teeks]

Registration Process.

Hi Keri,

Thanks for the info. I had my 21st week scan/checkup with my private doctor yesterday. Since he suggested me on delivering my twins in the Queen Mary Hospital, I inquired about the registration process. Is it true that you need to register in the Tsan Yuk Hospital (public-Hospital Road) first and then only can deliver in Queen Mary? or did you go to Queen Mary straight? Please suggest

I have made an appointment in Tsan Yuk Hospital (just in case).

 

[Bernard]

Hi Avi
That does sound expensive, although I do agree that it's very important to be comfortable with your obs. - especially if it's your first birth.

If you're not that fussed, however, and you are really concerned about the cost I wouldn't worry too much about changing at such a late stage.

With my first baby I was in the public system, so had a different doctor (different sex, different seniority, different attitude!) at just about every appointment and had no idea who would actually deliver my baby until he turned up. Looking about twelve years oldhttp://forum.geobaby.com/misc.php?action=getsmilies&s=#.

It certainly made me more nervous about the birth but was fine in the end.

This time I thought I was sorted as I decided to go private (despite lack of insurance), but my doctor decided to skip the country last month so I've changed obs. at 32 weeks. I saw Sally Fergusson yesterday and she was lovely - she's at the Shui On too - and I feel that I still have plenty of time to get to know her before the birth. Remember that your antenatal appointments will be much more frequent and intense in later pregnancy, so you'll actuallly be spending more time with your doctor at this stage.

I think you have plenty of time to make the change, in other words!

Bernard

 

[Bernard]

Hi Avi
That does sound expensive, although I do agree that it's very important to be comfortable with your obs. - especially if it's your first birth.

If you're not that fussed, however, and you are really concerned about the cost I wouldn't worry too much about changing at such a late stage.

With my first baby I was in the public system, so had a different doctor (different sex, different seniority, different attitude!) at just about every appointment and had no idea who would actually deliver my baby until he turned up. Looking about twelve years old.
It certainly made me more nervous about the birth but was fine in the end.

This time I thought I was sorted as I decided to go private (despite lack of insurance), but my doctor decided to skip the country last month so I've changed obs. at 32 weeks. I saw Sally Fergusson yesterday and she was lovely - she's at the Shui On too - and I feel that I still have plenty of time to get to know her before the birth. Remember that your antenatal appointments will be much more frequent and intense in later pregnancy, so you'll actuallly be spending more time with your doctor at this stage.

I think you have plenty of time to make the change, in other words!

Bernard

 

[Slee]

Rani, good point but if you're paying your own way I'd definitely recommend Adventist and Cannossa over Matilda solely because from friend's experiences it seems the best way to keep control of the final cost of the whole experience.

Personally, I have insurance so have no problem with Matilda recouping my premiums and some Yes, a very selfish attitude but the whole reason I took out super douper insurance.

 

[hoping4b]

Recently had a caesar at Adventist. Stayed in one extra night (6 nights in total) due to jaundice. Total cost was $117k!! Paediatrician was $2000 per day - I paid a total of $14k for this (Dr Joseph Pang) - visits at his office are $700 each (just had one for a checkup and included $200 for hep b vaccination). Don't have the breakdown of fees in front of me but each item (eg anaes, ob/gyn) ended up costing more than quoted. Ob/gyn charged $1500 per visit in hospital (6 visits = total of $9k).