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Having A Baby In Jakarta

One of readers tells us about the arrival of their son in March 2010.

After we found out that we were expecting our second child in March of this year our thoughts immediately turned to the best location to have the baby. The options we considered were either to remain in Jakarta, return home to Scotland, travel to Singapore or even return to the Middle East where our first child was born.

We pretty quickly ruled out the Middle East and then Scotland as our home there is rented out and 2 months with the parents/inlaws was more than either of us had the patience for. Singapore seemed the best option but I wasn’t overly keen on uprooting our eldest daughter (now 2) for a couple of months and living apart from my husband for that period of time (he doesn’t have a job which can be done from Singapore).

We then started to look at Jakarta as an option and I was recommended an obstetrician here, Dr Gozali, who had recently returned from years spent practicing in the UK and was now working in the Jakarta Women & Children Clinic. We met with Dr Gozali and were impressed with his forthright approach and calm demeanour. Given that our first child was delivered with no complications and that the second pregnancy was progressing well we then made the decision to remain here.

Our son was born in March of this year at Medistra Hospital without complications and we returned home the next day with minimum disruption to both our lives and that of our elder daughter.

I’ve given a few tips, based on personal experience which may be useful to couples considering Jakarta as an option:

1. Although your obstetrician may have fluent English the nurses/midwives do not (my Indonesian is practically non-existant and certainly doesn’t expand to medical terminology) so communication with them can be difficult. If this is your first baby and you feel you may have lots of questions about caring for the baby then it would be wise to have another resource planned for this – perhaps other friends who are already parents or your own mother/mother in law/sister to come visit once the baby arrives.

2. Be prepared for other people’s reactions when you tell them you are going to have the baby here, remember it’s your decision and you don’t have to justify it.

3. Be aware that certain blood types are not commonly available in Jakarta although there is a blood bank here. Know your blood type (and that of your partner) and do your homework on what’s readily available for you should it be required. You can ask friends or family with the same blood types to donate blood ahead of your delivery date.

4. Visit your hospital of choice beforehand and select the “room type” you want and be very clear on check-in procedures etc for b-day (when we arrived at the hospital with me in the later stages of labour they were very keen to give us a tour of the VIP suites!). Wandering aimlessly and negotiating the language barrier is not fun when you’re having contractions!

5. Given Jakarta’s notorious traffic problem do set off for the hospital in good time and contact your obstetrician early to ensure he/she has plenty of time to get across town, particularly if this is a second or third baby.

6. I found the nursing staff and midwives very kind and helpful but you do have to tell them what you want and don’t want (eg having the baby in the room with you, or not, be clear with them on what your plans are to feed the baby etc). They will happily respect your wishes, you just have to tell them what they are, understandably they are not mindreaders!

7. Be clear on your options for pain relief, particularly if you’ve given birth elsewhere previously. Gas and air are not an option in Indonesia so be clear on what you think you may need or want.

8. Do your research on the paperwork you need to get the admin for your baby’s birth certificate done. We needed to have copies of our own birth certificates, passports, kitas forms, marriage certificate (if you are not married this may be an issue here) and a fee available. The hospital provided a service to liaise with the government department to get the Indonesian birth certificate which must be done within 5 days of giving birth. You will then need to liaise with your national embassy to get the birth certificate (if you wish it) from your home country.

Giving birth here is a personal decision with definite pros and cons and I’m certainly not endorsing it for everybody, however on the whole I would say that my experience here was a positive one, the main plus being that I could remain in our own home until the day I gave birth and could return the day after.

Whatever you decide, best of luck!

Kindly written by Jane Marshall
jane1marshall@yahoo.co.uk

Jane, Caitlin and baby Gregor

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