Over 90% of respondents to a survey who gave birth at UHK had a good to very good overall experience of maternity care.
That’s according to the second National Maternity Experience Survey, analysing the care in Ireland’s 19 maternity hospitals and units, and at home.
UHK received a higher percentage of good to very good responses than the national average.
The National Maternity Experience Survey offers women who have recently given birth the opportunity to share their experiences of Ireland’s maternity services.
This is the second such survey, after the first in 2020.
63 of the 157 women who gave birth at UHK in 2025 responded to the survey, the vast majority of whom were between 30 and 39 years of age.
84% said they always felt treated with respect and dignity in pregnancy at UHK, while the vast majority said they received clear answers to questions during pregnancy.
Almost 30% did not feel there was good communication about their care between the maternity service and their GP.
16% said they were left alone by healthcare professionals during early labour, at a time when it worried them.
A quarter of respondents said they did not have the opportunity to ask questions about their labour and birth, shortly after their baby was born.
UHK also scored very high and above national averages for care in hospital after birth, for infant feeding, and for care of a baby who spent time in the neonatal unit.
86% of survey participants who gave birth at University Hospital Kerry said that their decisions about their maternity care were always respected by healthcare staff.
UHK improved its scores in several areas between the 2020 and 2025 surveys, including assistance from healthcare professionals in hospital after birth, and support with feeding in hospital after birth.
When asked about what was good about their care, respondents most commonly referred to the interactions they had with healthcare staff at UHK.
