Dunno what it's like where you work, but when I am on call I am expected to cover an area that is basically Most Of South London and I surprisingly don't know ALL of that area. Also if I am on call then I am at my house, asleep in bed, because I'll have done a full working day beforehand. Oh and it might well take 45 minutes to get to the other side of the patch. If these were home births and not BBAs, then the women should have been told to call earlier or the midwives should have given them instructions of what to happen if it all goes megafast. Totally agree about people hearing what they want to hear. I've even known people say to a mate of mine 'the midwife who I saw on Weds said XYZ' and she was like 'er no she didn't say that cos it was me and I didn't say that!'. But it is your Right to have free care (sod the rest of us and the fact that we can't work a million hours on no sleep so you call the on call phone at 3am cos you have a pain in your leg, that you've had since before you were pregnant) and it is your Right to a free ride to hospital, because after all, you are PREGNANT! Tut.