Mum felt pushed to abort baby with Down's syndrome

A mum whose girl has Down's syndrome said she felt "pushed towards termination" during her pregnancy.

Kat Booker, 42, said accusation astir her girl Nancy's information was "very negative" and made her consciousness "horrendous".

Charity radical Seren Dwt said connection utilized successful gestation could person a "massive impact" connected experience.

Antenatal Screening Wales said it was important accusation was offered successful an "unbiased and non-judgemental way".

Ms Booker, from Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf, said she felt she was being told what to bash passim her pregnancy, alternatively than being fixed accusation neutrally.

"I felt similar I was being pushed towards termination, due to the fact that it was the easier happening to do," she said.

"I was conscionable being told however hard everything was going to beryllium and each the things that Nancy rather perchance wouldn’t do, but not being fixed immoderate different accusation arsenic successful determination are children surviving rather happily with Down's syndrome."

She said Nancy, four, was a "dream" who "wears her retired successful the astir amusive mode possible".

Born utilizing the Covid-19 pandemic, she remembered being unsocial astatine appointments, needing much support.

"I couldn’t truly compute what was going on," she said.

"It was lone aft I left, and I was reasoning astir it, I got truly rather aggravated astir the mode that I’d been spoken to."

Other mums of children with Down's syndrome said they had akin experiences.

Laura Howard, mum to "cheeky and feisty" Tomos, four, said receiving his diagnosis aft helium was calved felt "very overmuch similar a bereavement situation".

"We had a caregiver coming successful and being rather upset, saying 'oh, you’re excessively bully a radical to person this hap to you'," she said.

"It’s from bully intentions that they’re trying to accidental that, but it is inactive creating this full antagonistic concern astir what is conscionable a babe archetypal and foremost."

Along with 2 different mums - Lou Kennedy and Laura Thomas - she acceptable up Seren Dwt, a charitable organisation gifting Welcome Boxes to babies with Down's syndrome crossed Wales.

"Having these boxes is saying determination is simply a enactment radical for you," Ms Howard said.

"You are not alone, and your kid volition beryllium alright, there’s lovely, affirmative things that they tin execute and determination is simply a assemblage acceptable and waiting with unfastened arms for you."

All 3 agreed connection was incredibly important.

“I privation I could spell backmost and archer myself 2 hours aft she was born, erstwhile we realised, that you’re going to beryllium OK and she’s going to beryllium OK and beingness is not going to beryllium doom and gloom,” said Ms Kennedy.

“People’s reactions, people’s tones, people’s words person specified a monolithic impact,” added Ms Howard.

Sarah Fox, caput of programme for Antenatal Screening Wales, agreed.

The organisation provides the policies, standards, and model to alteration maternity services crossed Wales to supply screening tests, usually ultrasounds oregon humor tests, for those who take to person them.

She said their relation was to guarantee accusation was "robust" and "evidence-based", offered successful an unbiased and non-judgmental way.

"For example, we would usage connection similar 'probability' oregon 'chance'. We would not usage the word 'risk'.

"We would speech astir 'conditions' not 'diseases'," she explained.

Ms Fox said they trained each pupil midwives astir however to verbally connection screening tests, arsenic good arsenic providing written accusation successful antithetic formats.

It is conscionable 1 portion of the full maternity attraction system, but she said she understood the request to perceive to feedback.

"We are up for the challenge.

"We privation to consistently amended and marque amended grooming and collaborate much intimately with maternity services and with families to marque definite that the grooming is acceptable for purpose, and the accusation is acceptable for intent to alteration that unbiased, informed choice."

Gareth Thomas, a sociologist astatine Cardiff University University, has done extended probe with healthcare professionals, and written a publication astir the connection astir disablement successful gestation and antenatal care.

He said helium wanted to spot "why we're truthful invested successful screening and however it affects healthcare professionals, arsenic good arsenic expectant parents".

He said it was simplistic and violative to blasted staff, erstwhile truthful galore are "conscientious" and the "victims of assorted pressures, not slightest time".

His probe from 2017 recovered the word "risk" was being utilized successful clinics, which mightiness suggest however profoundly ingrained that sermon astir disablement is, successful systems and society.