The Portland Hospital

I had an amazing birthing experience and prenatal care here. The midwives are caring, intelligent and I never would have made it through my delivery without Linda Harrison… Seriously, I sent her flowers afterwards. She’s the best.
We were randomly upgraded to a suite after I delivered because all of the basic rooms were full. We had two rooms, two bathrooms and my husband was able to sleep on a pullout bed (which was incredibly uncomfortable), but who cares about him… I’m the one who gave birth!
The best thing about this hospital was the food. Three meals a day (you can pick from a huge list of foods, and they accommodate all types of diets) plus afternoon tea. SERIOUSLY?! So amazing. Plus they will also bring you whatever you want whenever you want it if you just call the kitchen.
I will definitely be back here with my second child :)

My newborn son almost died at the hands of a negligent doctor at the Portland hospital. He was a week old when Dr. Cowan severed an artery in his little body during a routine circumcision. My son was discharged immediately after the procedure and I took him home. By the time I woke him up for his scheduled feed he was haemorrhaging badly and had a nappy soaked with blood.
We rushed him back to the hospital where the it took eight staff to stabilise him. He endured another operation that night.
In the morning, after no sleep and still worried sick about my son, I received a phone call from from the hospital accounts department asking how we were going to fund his treatment. Considering my son was only there because they almost killed him the day before, I thought the cheek was beyond comprehension.
When we complained about the doctor and treatment, the Portland staff actually lied about the time we left the hospital to cover his negligence, even though we have documents proving otherwise.
Since the time my son almost lost his life, the Portland have tried to buy our silence and bill us for other costs associated with his lifesaving treatment.
I also gave birth to one of my other children here and found the whole experience they offered a new mother disgusting even compared to the NHS.
Keep your precious children away from this old, dirty, corrupt and dangerous establishment.

I am very fortunate to have private ex-​pat insurance (Cigna) that covered my antenatal care + c-​section, hospital stay and postnatal care. I know nothing else, as I have one baby and he was born here.
So, having gotten that out of the way (read: I’m not a «too posh to push» gal) — even if I HAD paid out of pocket, I would’ve been utterly and completely impressed with my experience at The Portland Hospital in London. Also in comparison to the prices in the US, the Portland is a deal! (All in, would’ve cost roughly $ 20k).
I began my experience with a highly recommended consultant (Cathy Matthews) and was with her until about 6 months along. Some personal circumstances meant that she needed to move her lower-​risk patients to another consultant in her practice (Dr Maryam Parisaei). Both were wonderful, but I really loved Maryam, obviously she got me through the finish line and truly is a special human being. So far beyond my expectations. Funny, endearing, professional, skilled, great bedside manner and extremely reliable and competent. Went far above and beyond for me and my baby and I couldn’t have asked for more. Some higher power was looking down upon me by giving me Maryam, I really lucked out.
Their practice works exclusively (privately) for the Portland, and Cathy and Maryam both also work at The Homerton via NHS. Highly recommend them if you are seeking a consultant. Their office is located very close (across the street) from the hospital.
Annnnnnd, back to the hospital. Conveniently located right next to Portland Street station. Cabs all over the place (important for pregnant ladies!). It is the 5-​star resort of hospitals. Top notch, super efficient, private midwife (mine was very excited I hadn’t scheduled a c-​section, though I ended up with one in hour 20 regardless!), great meals (seriously!), private recovery room, excellent midwives, lots of support, a party gift with Neal’s Yard goodies and wonderful aftercare. I actually never wanted to leave.
I was also able to access the birthing pool, which I used for 4 hours. It’s quite a good setup for this type of thing. I won’t say it was the «amazing» experience that other (probably amnesic) mothers rave about but it did get me through a few hours and is right in a private room so felt very private and secluded.
They also play pretty good music! I know that’s weird, but its true.
After laboring for what felt like days (15 hours) it was decided that my bundle of joy was a melon-​headed brut, and thus an emergency c-​section was required. All that work and still getting sliced! Luckily I felt very confident in Maryam and she was very reassuring the entire way through, I knew I was in good hands. Of note, the anesthist was so sweet. Truly, an angel. It was an older gentlemen, and obviously I was on a lot of drugs at that point but I just remember thinking that he didn’t need to be so caring or nice to me, but that he was, and I was really grateful for it at a particularly scary/​vulnerable moment.
Can’t ask for much more than that. If you need a private hospital or have great insurance, I highly recommend The Portland to birth your babe. From Week 6 to Week 46, this place was fantastic. Made having a baby away from the homeland a little bit less scary!
PS – I’m happy to answer any questions people might have. If you are deciding on whether to use the Portland please feel free to message me.
Maryam’s info:
Website: