Pregnancy in Bucharest

My wife gave birth to our little girl three weeks ago, we used the university hospital ('spital universital') in sector 5 Bucharest, from what i heard this is one of the best, if not the best hospital for babies in Bucharest.

We encountered no problems at all, although i was left a little bemused whilst Ana was in labour as no one told me anything at all for hours, but this is Romania, not England, and i was not allowed to be present for the birth. Our daughter was taken away straight after birth, and i was then allowed to see my wife, we then had to wait for Vicky to be brought to us, about 2 hours after the birth, later in the evening Ana and Vicky were moved into a ward, and i managed to get back in after visiting hours to see them breifly, before they then spent there first night together, the following day i got the birth certificate sorted, which as normal in Romania meant alot of running about from place to place and lots of paperwork, i even had to get an Romanian translation of my British birth certificate. All was completed though in that day, and Ana and Vicky were allowed home on the next morning.

We had to make the usual 'payments' to the doctor and nurses, but mostly it was all a good experience.

Ana is recovering very well, and Vicky is now a very big and fat baby girl, she was weighed yesterday again and is now 4.8 kilos, she was born with 4 kilos.

I have also had dealings with this hospital too, i was bitten by a dog, and had an operation in this hospital, the operating doctor was a very nice woman, who luckily spoke some English, she fixed the big holes in my hand and wrist, and all seemed well, however i am still recovering, and my bloody fingers are very stiff with not much movement, i have to excersise them much more to free them up now, the wounds have healed but the tendans are a bit stuck... Not the hospitals fault, but mine. However no doctor told me to excersise in the first two weeks, and i have only been doing so since last friday.

Thanks for your contribution daz90!

Harmonie.

We had to make the usual 'payments' to the doctor and nurses,


Great. Another one who doesnt seem to want to stop de bribing culture. For god's sake, can you please understand that if we continue to bribe/pay these people, the situation never changes?

Yes,my wife also gave birth in a state hospital. Did I pay anything to the docters afterwards? Not a single penny. The fact is, through my wife's healthcare contributions, she is insured for these matters. Therefore, morally nor legally do we have to give this people "extra money".

We all know that docters/nurses complain about their low salary, but this is NOT my problem. As a simple citizen I cannot be bothered with this. The fact of the matter is, my wife pays taxes, and we do NOT pay bribes as that is illegal in Romania.

If you ever find out that a docter/nurse is demanding money in order to be treated you imediately call 112 and the National Corruption Agency ("DNA"). If the situation is that urgent, pay the money, and have someone else call the police in the meantime. If we allow ourselfes to pay money to PUBLIC docters in this country the mentality and the system will never change

NB: I know when paying "afterwards" you can legally say it's not a bribe (as it is a token of appreciation) but morally it's still wrong!

Thank you for yout input Mark_W!

Aurélie

We just found out that we're about 5 weeks pregnant and are looking for doctors to go do regular checkups.  We won't be having the birth in Romania though.  Can anyone recommend a doctor or hospital to do checkups?

we had a baby two years ago and went to euro clinic its was very pricey $4000 but for the health of your kids its worth it, my partner got her own room and stayed for three days with round the clock staff.

I have  a name and number of the doc who delivered the baby feel free to pm for his details.

Jason

Hello Jason.

Thank you for your input.

Do not hesitate to recommend this doctor into the Bucharest Busines directory.

Thank you,
Aurélie

Hello everyone. I am an American living here in Bucharest. I am married to a Romanian woman and she is currently pregnant. If you need help let me know and maybe I can put you in contact with her she is a Bucharest native and we will have our little one in August.

Hello freezer35.

These are general questions. If you have some informations, do not hesitate to share them.

PS: Christine forms part of the Expat.com Team.

Thank you,
Aurélie

Well i have had very good experiences with the Delta hospital in Bucharest, and with Victor Babes clinic. It are private hospitals but the quality is extreamly good. The costs are not so high in my opinion, something about 100Lei a visit, but it are excellent doctors and acurat treatment, it was way more professional then in the Netherlands.

Hi to you all,

Would appreciate hearing about recommended health insurance or HMO in Romanian for general health and maternity.
Recommended clinics in which I can run test for pregnancy, and in which hospital to give birth?
Also, do you know estimated prices/costs for this process?
I didn't get a health cover/insurance yet and I'm looking for a good one.

Thank you for your time!


Gal.

Hi Daz 90,

I saw you wrote about receiving medical treatment in Bucharest in pregnancy time of your wife.
Me and my husband will be moving in 3 weeks to Bucharest due to my husband's work. Since we're planing on bringing a child to the world in near future I'll be glad to know about recommended health insurance or HMO in Romanian.
Recommended clinics in which I can run test for pregnancy, and in which hospital to give birth?
Also, do you know estimated prices/costs for this process?

Thank you for your time!
Hope you like it there in Bucharest.

Gal.

Thank you ShawarmaXpat!

Do you know if they have ER there? I heard private clinics don't always have emergency rooms and in case of complications it's best to be in a public hospital. is it true?
Do you Know which insurance work with them? I have to find a proper medical/health insurance.

They do not have an E.R. at the private hospitals. I wouldn't worry in my opinion the state doctors use this as a scare tactic because they want bribes. The bribes cost the same as thedelivery in a private hospital and still the experience is 100 times better. My wife gave birth at Medlife in August...wonderful experience. I took my newborn to the ER state hospital for vomitting and it was like WW2 death zone. You can see the bacterias at the state ER. I wouldn't worry unless you know there will be complications. I pay money only to private hospitals...I refuse bribes. My wife is Romanian and I am American. She was concerned because they had no ER, but after thanked me because she was treated so well. My American friend had a baby in the state hospital and had to pay security to see his wife and pay nurses everytime he and his wife wanted to see their baby. We had no hidden costs...we payed what we were qouted and treated like I would be at home. If you choose the state hospital...record everything said so you can have proof later.

hello,

I have a friend who has found himself in something of a dilemma : his gf is 5 months pregnant and they are living hand to mouth in ferentari, bucharest. he says that finding a doctor for his gf is proving most difficult. Would you have any advice that i may pass along to them? thank you.

Is she Romanian or foreigner?
If she's Romanian and has a (legal) job, then she should go to her family doctor and then they'll tell her what she can do next. Most tests and check-ups will be free. For the ones they need to pay for, primaria Bucuresti (the city-hall) offers vouchers (2000 lei) to pregnant women that they can use for any medical stuff during this period (check-ups, monitoring, medication if the case, birth, etc): http://dgas.ro/voucher-materna/.

Is she is a foreigner, probably going to a private clinic is the easiest thing (Sanador, Medlife, Medicover, etc) as they offer various deals (just monitoring, monitoring + birth, etc). I got a good deal at Medicover through my job, for example, but they offer deals in general anyway.
Or, if she paid the monthly medical insurance here, she can go to a state hospital too, for free, as she contributed to the system.