Public vs semi-private maternity care in Ireland — what are the actual differences

Hi everyone! I'm 12 weeks pregnant with my first baby and I'm trying to figure out the differences between public and semi-private maternity care at a Dublin maternity hospital.

I haven't told anyone I'm close to that I'm pregnant yet, so unfortunately I can't ask friends/family about their experiences. I'm hoping people here might be able to explain the practical differences between public and semi-private care.

So far, I've had:

A Panorama/NIPT blood test and a prenatal screening ultrasound, which cost €460

A 12-week dating ultrasound, which cost €150

A booking/history appointment with a midwife

My first question is: would the above appointments/tests have been available free of charge if I had gone through the public maternity system? I realise Panorama/NIPT is different because it's optional/private, but I'm particularly wondering about the dating ultrasound and the midwife booking/history appointment.

Secondly, what are the actual benefits of going semi-private?

From what I understand, the main difference is potentially getting a smaller/shared semi-private ward rather than the larger public ward after giving birth, but I'm wondering if there are other significant benefits throughout the pregnancy, such as:

Seeing the same consultant more regularly?

More frequent appointments?

Additional scans?

Shorter waiting times?

More continuity of care?

Any differences in care during labour/birth?

Anything else you've personally found worthwhile?

And is the semi-private room actually guaranteed, or is it dependent on availability?

I'm particularly interested in hearing from people who have gone through the Coombe specifically, and whether you felt semi-private was worth the extra cost.

I'm not looking for a "which is better" answer — I'd really just like to understand what I'm actually paying for with semi-private compared with public, because at the moment I'm not sure what the practical difference is.

Thanks so much! ❤️