IRELAND’S MATERNITY CARE for many years now has been a mishmash of public and private (for those who could afford it).

But the current system is coming to a head right now.

The Rotunda Hospital is in a stand-off with the government and HSE over its decision to allow consultants on public-only contracts do work for private patients.

Professor Sean Daly, the master of the Rotunda, told the Oireachtas health committee this week that the practice was being allowed to happen as there is no private maternity option for women to avail of in Ireland. 

Daly said private care is being allowed in the Rotunda for public-only contract holders because the hospital has long believed that women should have choice. 

He told the committee that he did explain it to the Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill when she came to the Rotunda last year, adding: “Suffice to say, she wasn’t happy.”

Back in 2023, when the public-only consultant contracts were being debated, the then health minister Stephen Donnelly said the new contract was about removing private care from public hospitals, a key deliverable of the Sláintecare Report.

The transition applies to all private care, including maternity hospitals.

As this is now coming to the fore, we want to hear your stories.

• What has been your experience of maternity care in Ireland? Tell us while letting us know if you had public, semi-private or private care.
• Do you think maternity hospitals should offer private care?
• How was your experience in the public system? 
• If you chose to go private, what were the reasons for doing so and what was your experience? 

Given the focus of the debate this week, we particularly would like to hear from women who have experienced both the public and private maternity systems, and what differences you experienced in care? 

Get in touch by emailing answers@thejournal.ie and telling us about your experiences. Keep your responses to two or three paragraphs.

Please include your name, age and county, or tell us if you would like to remain anonymous.

We’ll reflect your stories in a future article on this subject.